


On The Waterfront

by dsa_archivist, EA Karras (Anne)



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, due South
Genre: Alternate Universe, BDSM, Crossover, Drama, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, S&M, Series: Mountie Slayer Arc 3, Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2000-11-14
Updated: 2000-11-14
Packaged: 2018-11-10 19:37:11
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 25,054
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11133354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dsa_archivist/pseuds/dsa_archivist, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anne/pseuds/EA%20Karras
Summary: A return to the other world. Just who /is/ Andrew Vermis, anyway.....?This story is a sequel toUnbound.





	On The Waterfront

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Speranza, the archivist: this story was once archived at [Due South Archive](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Due_South_Archive). To preserve the archive, I began manually importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in June 2017. I tried to reach out to all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [Due South Archive collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/duesoutharchive).
    
    
    Title: "On The Waterfront" 
    By: Magnes and EA Karras 
    email:,
    Disclaimer: Due South and all its characters belong to Alliance. Tara,
    Willow, and anyone else we used from Buffy belong to Mutant Enemy. The
    rest belong to us. Pairings: too numerous to mention 
    Notes: Look! A Brando movie title!!
    Rating: R 
    
    -- 
    
    "GRISSOM!" 
    
    The dust was still settling in Hell and the fallout of the battle against
    Lilith and D'Hoffryn was still making itself known in a variety of ways.
    The least-expected result, however, was a furious Caanite Prince stalking
    the halls looking for the Primal Higher. The demons that remained or
    were trickling back scattered in his wake as the red head made his way
    first to Tom's room, then to the security control center. Fraser was
    on his heels, unusually silent. The demons were confused because they
    had never seen Kowalski so fired up and as a whole they did not like
    out-of-character conduct. They were used to a gentle, quiet, smiling
    Ray Kowalski, not the pissed off detective in their midst. The fact that
    it was their Higher that produced this state did nothing to calm them
    down, either. 
    
    "GRISSOM!" 
    
    He burst into the control room to find Alex, Turnbull, and Tom sipping
    coffee out of mugs and relaxing. They all looked up in surprise. 
    
    "Ray?  No, Prince Kowalski," Alex said. "Fraser. Good morning." 
    
    Ray barely nodded, turning his wrath on Tom. "What the hell did ya say
    ta him?" 
    
    Tom gave him a helpless look. "Who?" 
    
    "My retainer, that's who." 
    
    The Moloch jumped to his feet. "Where is he? You've seen him? I've been
    looking all over for him!" 
    
    "What, to add injury to insult?" 
    
    Tom blinked. He'd never seen Ray like this. He was furious and somehow
    Tom was the source of his anger. 
    
    "Ray, hold on a second here. James was gone this morning when I went
    back to bed. That was about half an hour ago. I've been trying to find
    him. Have you seen him?" 
    
    "Yeah," snapped the Prince. "Yeah, I did. Where the hell do ya come off
    being so goddamned mean ta him? After all you two have been through together!"
    
    "Mean? What do you mean? Where is he?" 
    
    "He left. I don't know where the hell he is." 
    
    "Left?" wondered Tom. "Ray...he /left/?" 
    
    "Yeah. Thanks to you." 
    
    "Me?" exclaimed Tom, horrified. 
    
    "So, ya hate what he is, do ya?" 
    
    Confused glances were exchanged between the Alex and Turnbull, who looked
    to Fraser for clarification. The constable just shook his head. 
    
    "I don't...! Ohmygod." Tom put one hand to his forehead, panic rising
    in his breast. "Ohmygod. James!" 
    
    "What did ya say ta him?" repeated Ray. 
    
    Tom looked stricken. "I...I was talking to Mina. He must have heard us.
    Oh, my god! I said I hated being a vampire. She said there were advantages
    and I said...what's the advantage of burning in the sun and...and sucking
    blood and stinking like a slaughter house. Oh, god! He overheard me."
    
    Ray's anger evaporated in the face of this devastation. He sagged a bit,
    his adrenalin rush fading. Tom was almost gagging. 
    
    "Jesus, Tom," muttered Ray. 
    
    The Moloch seized him by the upper arms. "Where is he? Where did he go?"
    
    The phone rang. Alex picked it up. "Hell," he said then listened to the
    excited voice on the line. 
    
    "I dunno, Tom, he said he wanted ta think," Ray replied. 
    
    Alex hung up the phone. "Uh, excuse me, gentlemen?  That was someone
    named Francesca Welsh. She says Adam called her. Seems Cecil has started
    labor and is on his way to Cook County General." 
    
    To a man, they stared at the cop as if he were an alien from another
    planet. Alex's eyes grew large and he gestured helplessly. "What?" 
    
    Fraser looked to Turnbull. "I believe I have a headache." 
    
    "As do I, sir." 
    
    Suddenly the Diefenbakers, both in wolf form, came tearing into the room,
    growling as they fought over one of Ray's sneakers. A moment later Peter
    Dire came rushing in triumphantly, dragging the other Tom and Aria by
    either hand. 
    
    "Gentlemen! I want you all to meet the future Mrs. Peter Dire!" 
    
    Ray swayed as the werewolves circled round and he stared at the newcomers
    with a look that could only be described as green around the gills. 
    
    "Which one?" 
    
    *** 
    
    Calhoun sat by the waterfront, staring at the oily, lapping waves and
    flat-out brooding. One of the things they hadn't been able to fix, a
    major side effect of Wyrm's influence, Lake Michigan had far to go before
    it reached its former levels of cleanliness. It fit his mood so well
    tonight. 
    
    He loved Tom so much. He couldn't bear the thought that he'd hurt him
    worse than anyone else had in the Higher's life. It was a long and bitter
    list and he never wanted to be categorized with the likes of Faith and
    Anastasia and Lauren. He wished he could understand Tom's apparent disgust
    of all that was and wasn't being a vampire. 
    
    He'd thought it hadn't bothered Tom. He'd assumed Tom had gotten past
    most of the stereotypes Slayers were fed from birth. 
    
    He guessed he was wrong. 
    
    Perhaps it was part of being Primal Higher. D'Hoffryn had despised the
    Sabbat even more than the Giovanni. Since being declared Autarkis, he'd
    taken such pride in the Endari Sabbat. They were a strong, loyal clan
    and his practice of allowing other clanless vampires to run and hunt
    with them, yet retain their clan names, had gone far towards earning
    the Sabbat allies. 
    
    Yet all they were good for was burning in the sun, sucking blood, and
    smelling like an abattoir. 
    
    He didn't know what to do. Where to go. He had to go home at some point,
    he realized that. But what was he supposed to say to Tom? 
    
    How could Tom say that when together they had made something as stunningly
    beautiful and wonderful as Sophia Grania? 
    
    God, how screwed up everything was. 
    
    It started to rain. 
    
    How perfect. 
    
    God damnit, he hated water. 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom drove James' car, peering out the rain-slicked windows and he sighed.
    He'd been driving for an hour, having taken Ray's cell phone so they
    could update him on Cecil's condition. 
    
    He knew it was stupid and a waste of time, but he couldn't sit still,
    either in the hospital or in Hell, just waiting for James. He had to
    go look. The zoo was fruitless, as was Tom's old apartment and the Vecchio's.
    He knew James could hide forever if he wanted and wouldn't be found until
    he was good and ready. 
    
    The mental link they shared was still there, but he wasn't receiving
    anything from James. He could send, though, and he prayed some of his
    regret reached the Sabbat. 
    
    He stopped at a red light and rubbed his eyes, fighting a headache. He
    hadn't meant what he'd said about being a vampire. He hoped that James
    knew him enough to know when he was just upset. 
    
    Apparently he'd been wrong. 
    
    He looked up when the car door opened and James slid into the passenger
    seat, dripping wet with rain and God knew what else. They looked at each
    other, neither of them sure what to say. 
    
    James spoke first. "Pull over there. We need to talk." 
    
    Suddenly Tom was trembling and his vision was misty as he pulled the
    Jag to the curb. 
    
    "James, I-" 
    
    The Sabbat held up a hand for quiet. "Tom. Please listen to me for a
    moment." 
    
    Tom shut up instantly. 
    
    "I've been Prince Kowalski's retainer for seven years. These have been
    the seven best years I've ever known even with everything that's happened.
    I have friends. I have a family again. I can honestly say I know what
    it feels like to be perfectly happy." 
    
    Tom bit his lip, hating himself, wanting nothing more than to throw himself
    on the saturated vampire and chase all this doubt away. 
    
    James leaned back in the seat, closing his eyes. "When Lilith took me
    over again...I could not stop screaming for the horror of it. When she
    made me turn you, I would have gladly died to stop it. I'm so sorry I
    wasn't strong enough to stop her, Tom." 
    
    His voice cracked as he reached for the vampire. "James-" 
    
    "Let me finish. I've been frightened for a while. Being turned human
    made me realize what would happen to me some day: I'd lose you. I'm just
    a god damned, soulless bastard, but I don't want to lose the best thing
    that ever happened to me. I've watched too many friends grow old and
    die. I wondered for a long while if you would ever want to be undead.
    Guess I have your answer." 
    
    He could feel tears on his cheeks. Should he even be able to cry now?
    This was torture for both of them. "James, please!" 
    
    "Almost done. I can't leave. We have a family, I have duties to my clan
    and to my prince and to my lord. I can't tell right now if you want me,
    hate me, if the smell of a Sabbat makes you sick, whatever. I just want
    you to know I tried all the way to the end." 
    
    He was about to open the car door and leave when Tom fell against him,
    sobbing. This was not exactly a new thing, but it still surprised him.
    For one thing, he'd thought Tom had hated him. 
    
    For another thing, he'd thought that vampires couldn't cry. Correction.
    He knew they couldn't cry. He lifted Tom's chin, staring down at him,
    confused. 
    
    Tom hugged closer to James, not willing to let go just yet as he somehow
    crawled out of his seat and curled up on James' lap. "I'm sorry. I just...I
    was so upset about it all. I couldn't...I'm so sorry. I love you..."
    He was getting soaked but he didn't care. He'd been so afraid. 
    
    "Tom..." He kissed the top of Tom's head, holding him tight. "I love
    you too." He was thanking gods he no longer believed in that he'd decided
    to head home. He clutched the Moloch to him, loving the feel of that
    long, warm body. Suddenly Tom sat up, smacking his head on the Jag's
    roof. 
    
    "Ow! We have to get to the hospital." 
    
    "Why?" Calhoun froze. "Are you sick?" 
    
    Tom almost snickered at that "No. Cecil...the baby's coming." 
    
    "What?" 
    
    "He went into labor late yesterday. He's been asking for you." 
    
    "Oh, god! Let me drive!" 
    
    *** 
    
    The hospital staff thought they had it /all/ figured out this time. 
    
    There were two of all of them. 
    
    Two Ray Kowalski's. Two Benton Fraser's. Two James Calhouns. Two Tom
    Grissom's. All of them having some type of loud, emotional homecoming
    in the demon o.b. wing. 
    
    And all of them were accident-prone. But why did the parents of all these
    twins only use one name? Was this an insurance scam? 
    
    And then Alex Vargas and Cecil Noor arrived and the nurses took them
    both to heart, figuring this particular set of twins had been separated
    at birth. 
    
    *** 
    
    Von put down his cell phone, rolling his eyes. Apparently the consort
    had found his Elder. Damnit. He'd almost been counting on Calhoun leaving
    the Moloch once and for all. How disappointing. Was he going to have
    to wait until the consort kicked off to get what he wanted? 
    
    He turned to the living room and caught Tara and Willow staring at him
    and holding hands tightly. He knew they were lovers, anyone could tell
    that by the way they looked at each other. 
    
    But the way they were staring at him... 
    
    He found he didn't mind at all. 
    
    "Girls." He cleared his throat. "What's your blood types? Either of you
    rH negative by chance?" 
    
    They both smiled. This was his lucky day. 
    
    *** 
    
    Nikko grabbed the phone on the third ring, nearly breaking her sister's
    hand just so she could be the one to answer it. "Joe?" She knew it was
    him. She could feel it. 
    
    Cassie rolled her eyes and returned to the cut-throat game of Candyland
    she, Jay, Lucia, and Ray-J were waging against Sophia. Cassie would have
    sworn that game was rigged to favor anyone under seven. If she got stuck
    in that damned swamp one more time she was burning the whole thing because
    it was definitely possessed. 
    
    Nikko was almost drooling on the phone. Cassie shook her head, amused
    at Wonder Woman here going to pieces because of a phone call from beyond
    the grave. She'd spoken to Joe a few times. He seemed pretty nice. Intense,
    but nice. Then again, he had to be. Ghost or not, James Calhoun would
    find a way to kill him all over again if he wasn't. 
    
    "Don't tie up the line, Nik, the hospital might call." 
    
    She sat down, drew her card, and ended up back in the swamp. Jay was
    perpetually back at the beginning, Sophia was slaughtering them all.
    
    "Anyone for Chutes and Ladders?" asked Lucia, still not able to escape
    the forest. 
    
    "I never make it past twenty-seven," muttered Jay, resigning himself
    to his doom. 
    
    *** 
    
    "Got a friend up here who wants to meet ya, Cat girl." Joe was practically
    purring into the phone line. "Gonna come up soon and see us?" 
    
    "Sure," Nikko grinned, ignoring her sister's waves to get off the phone.
    "When?" 
    
    "Whenever you want. Leave yer dads behind though, sweetie. They might
    not like our reindeer games." 
    
    *** 
    
    Frannie balked and thought for a moment she was seeing double at the
    host of twins that met her in the waiting room. Her brother had warned
    her, but to actually see it...Wow. Two Benton's. Now that was nice. And
    the other Ray had a daughter. And the cop was Alex, not Cecil. Introductions
    were made and suddenly she had nine men fussing over her and making her
    comfortable and fetching her a drink and a stool for her feet. Maybe
    being pregnant did have its advantages. 
    
    Then Mina entered and smiled at all the commotion. "Elder?" 
    
    Both Sabbat and Kowalski turned around. Mina blinked. 
    
    "Cecil is calling for you, James. He wants you there for it." 
    
    James Calhoun made a face. He hated this. Three times with Tom had been
    enough. He cast a nervous look at his lover, still grimacing. 
    
    "Yes, ya hafta!" Kowalski said. "Don' make me make it an order, Dead
    Man!" 
    
    *** 
    
    Cecil grimaced and looked up as James entered the hospital room apprehensively.
    "He found you. Good..." 
    
    "Yeah..." Calhoun actually looked nervous. Wearing scrubs meant hospitals
    and hospitals meant too many sick people. Cecil would've laughed at that
    if he weren't in so much pain. "Um...what do you want me to-" 
    
    "Ahh! James!" 
    
    Cecil grouped for his hand and gripped it tightly. "Talk to me. Tell
    me anything." 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom looked up at Tara and Willow as they entered the waiting room halfway
    onto the fourth hour. They looked...different. They were still smiling
    those weird secret smiles. "Girls," he greeted. 
    
    "Tom." Tara sat next to him then Willow sat on the other side. "We heard
    about your healing. Congratulations." 
    
    "Thanks." 
    
    "Are you planning to start soon?" Willow asked curiously. He looked at
    her oddly. She smelled strange... 
    
    She smelled like Von. They both did. And not just the lingering scent
    of being around a Sabbat. They /really/ smelled like Von. 
    
    He grinned. "Start what?" 
    
    "For a child?" 
    
    "Maybe. Let me get over this latest one." 
    
    "Have fun." Tara grinned, and the three of them sat back, staring at
    the vending machines. They were all exhausted for different reasons.
    
    Ray shook his head, walking past them. "Freaks." 
    
    *** 
    
    Calhoun had run out of stories about his childhood on a ranch in the
    Laurentines and was working on the Korean War when Cecil's pain went
    from bad to worse and suddenly his hand was almost crushed in the demon's
    grip. Cecil looked awful and Calhoun felt a wave of guilt. 
    
    "Thank you for this, Cecil," he said. "I'm so sorry it hurts so much."
    
    Cecil shook his head. "It's...alright, James. I-I'm glad you're here
    with me. Oh!" 
    
    "We're naming her after you." 
    
    He managed to smile at the stressed-out vampire. "I know. Thank you.
    That means a lot to me." 
    
    "What you're doing means a lot to me. Want to give her a middle name?"
    
    Pain momentarily forgotten, Cecil beamed until the next twinge hit. 
    
    *** 
    
    Four hours and three broken fingers later, Cecelia Myrtle Calhoun was
    placed into her father's arms. She was identical to Nikko. 
    
    As soon as they could, all the family and friends hogged the nursery
    windows to see her. Even the other Tom melted a bit at the sight of the
    black-haired infant and gave the unsuspecting Alex Vargas a hungry look.
    Higher Grissom was basically useless and wanted only to get started on
    the next one. Calhoun smiled sadly, more than a little envious for his
    double's fortune in having such a legacy from Marianne. 
    
    Finally they spilled over into the room where Cecil was recovering. James
    was still with him, insisting Cecil needn't apologize for breaking his
    hand. It would be fine by the morning. 
    
    Congratulations rose up on all sides and James just smiled with pleasure.
    That was until Cecil decided to plant a kiss on the new father. 
    
    Calhoun barely had time for a yelp of surprise before he was thoroughly
    and deeply kissed by an Enthos who happened to have an iron grip. He
    couldn't escape. Not without hurting him. His only hope would be for
    Cecil to run out of air. 
    
    Finally he was released and he staggered back into Fraser, who steadied
    him. For a stunned moment there was silence. Then Ben, grinning like
    a maniac, began clapping. Everyone joined in, whooping and shouting until
    the nurses pounced. 
    
    Suddenly Frannie stopped laughing, a startled look upon her face. 
    
    "Uh-oh." 
    
    "Whassup?" asked her imitation older brother. 
    
    She smiled. "Glad we're in the hospital, bro, I think I'm gonna need
    it." 
    
    He gaped, dragging Fraser over for a security blanket. "What?!?" 
    
    "Get Harding here for me, will ya? Hey, Doc! My turn!" 
    
    "Oh, dear." 
    
    "Took the words outta my mouth, Frase." 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom narrowed his eyes at the payphone, feeling too tired to get up and
    use it. He was about to lean over and ask Ray for his cell phone so he
    could let the kids know they'd be a little while longer when he heard
    a crunching noise. 
    
    He looked up just in time to see the payphone come flying at him. He
    managed to duck before he was hit. 
    
    Ray stared at him, shaking his head. "Did you do that?" 
    
    "I...no?" Tom didn't sound so sure. "I've never done it before. Why would
    I start now?" 
    
    "Yeah, but before you were a Higher, you weren't playing Scanner Cop,
    either." 
    
    "Huh?" Tom stared at the broken payphone, then back at Ray. 
    
    "You know..." He made a head explosion motion. 
    
    "Oh...." He shook his head. "Had to be a fluke." 
    
    *** 
    
    Harding stared down at his tiny son, and tried desperately to think of
    a name. He absolutely could not remember if they had one picked out or
    not.  He looked up at his wife who was smiling at him exhaustedly. "I
    /swear/, Harding, if you name our kid Lincoln, I'll never forgive you."
    
    He chuckled. 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom curled closer to James, staring at the Sabbat. "I love you..." He
    kissed the tired vampire gently. "She's beautiful." 
    
    James didn't so much a budge. "I know. Just like her sisters." 
    
    "Mmm." Tom paused. "Nikko wants to visit Joe. Want me to go with?" 
    
    He considered before answering. "No. She can handle it." Calhoun felt
    a twist in his gut as he said so. "Besides, Dead Boy knows I'll kill
    him deader if he hurts her." 
    
    "James...I don't think he'd hurt her. I think he really does love her.
    I know she loves him. Besides, he's scared out of his mind of you." 
    
    "Smart guy." Calhoun smiled. "Hey, Mina said your sacs grew back. Guess
    that means you'll be pregnant next week at the latest, huh?" 
    
    "Shut up." Grinning, Tom bopped him with a pillow. "You wish, Elder.
    I swear, if I had a stake..." 
    
    They were both shocked when one came flying across the room and into
    Tom's hand. 
    
    "Ok. That was incredibly weird, Kinky." 
    
    "Uh...call Mina?" 
    
    "Yeah. Please." 
    
    *** 
    
    "I am likin' this ghoulite stuff, Benton. I get ta keep people hours
    now." 
    
    Benton Fraser leaned on one hand as he watched his lover fuss over Livia.
    He was totally taken with the concept of fatherhood and would spend hours
    on end talking to her and taking care of her. Dief seemed rather enamored
    with her as well and as for himself, well, he could barely wait for Ray
    to put her down so he could have a turn. 
    
    He was thrilled that Ray was no longer a vampire, though the fact that
    he was always sleepy came as a surprise of sorts. Prince Kowalski had
    told them that as a ghoulite Ray would need more sleep, more rest, and
    -with a sly wink- lots more sex. Fraser started to blush but Ray was,
    as he put it, all over that idea. 
    
    Well, so was he, but appearances had to be maintained. 
    
    *** 
    
    The first night, they just slept together. Two exhausted men, one bed,
    eleven hours of uninterrupted sleep. Nobody even raised an eyebrow at
    the notion of them sharing a bedroom and it seemed as if it was rather
    expected, actually. 
    
    The second night, when Cecelia was born, they settled into the bed together
    as if they had never been apart. Nothing had ever felt so right for Alex
    Vargas as holding Tom close and warm and tight against him. The Moloch
    curled up into his chest just as he had always done all those years ago
    and let out a low purr. 
    
    "She's a pretty little baby, isn't she?" asked Alex, stroking Tom's hair.
    
    "Which one?" wondered Tom. 
    
    "Both of them," he replied. 
    
    "You want a child, don't you?" 
    
    The police sergeant thought. "Yeah. That would be nice. Someone to fuss
    over. More than you, anyway." He pressed his lips to the coarse, dark
    hair. "Teach 'em how to play baseball. How to swim. Take 'em to games.
    Face it, Gato Man, this world needs more Orioles fans." 
    
    "How'd they do this year?" 
    
    "Oh, god, they suck." 
    
    Tom opened his eyes and gave his lover a sympathetic look. Alex, along
    with Brian and Jesus, was a perpetual, die-hard Orioles fan and suffered
    agonies when they lost. 
    
    "Want to do something about that suggestion of increasing the number
    of fans?" whispered Tom, running his splayed fingers across Alex's belly.
    
    Vargas didn't need a second invitation. 
    
    *** 
    
    He found Calhoun on the wall surrounding the compound, looking up into
    the night sky. They were far enough away from the city to be able to
    see the stars and the Sabbat sat with his back to the wall gazing upwards.
    
    "May I join you, Elder?" asked Aja. 
    
    "Of course, my lord." 
    
    Before he could stand Aja waved him to stay where he was. "Thank you,
    my childe, for all you have done for me and mine. I am eternally grateful
    to thee." 
    
    He smiled gently at the little boy that was older than civilization.
    "The pleasure was mine, Lord Caine." 
    
    "What would you do now, Elder?" 
    
    Calhoun considered, then cast him a mischievous look. "I think I'll get
    a haircut." 
    
    Aja laughed. "Speak to my father." 
    
    *** 
    
    "Drink more broth, Ray." 
    
    "I don' want any more. My back teeth are floating." 
    
    "Not enough. You need more liquids in you. You've lost too much blood
    lately and if you get the least bit dehydrated Mina /will/ put you in
    the hospital." 
    
    "Can't I have soda or a beer or some coffee?" 
    
    "Coffee in the morning. I promise. Broth now." 
    
    "Huh. Is it morning yet?" 
    
    *** 
    
    Vargas and Grissom lay entangled with each other, not yet willing to
    move apart. Tom sighed contently and tried to get even closer. 
    
    Alex kissed the top of his head and smiled. "Tom?" 
    
    "Mmm?" 
    
    "What're you going to do about Livia?" 
    
    "I...I can't take her from Ray." 
    
    "You seem...I dunno, repulsed or something. Is it just her?" 
    
    "It's how she came about." 
    
    "Oh." He brushed Tom's hair back, gently. "How was that?" 
    
    "I don't want to talk about it." 
    
    "Please?" 
    
    *** 
    
    Mina shook her head, checking Tom out as thoroughly as possible. "I can't
    find anything physical that could explain it. If you want I can run a
    CAT scan. Check out your electrical outtake." 
    
    "Whatever." Tom sighed slowly. "Just find out what it is. Please?"  He
    looked at Calhoun seriously. "I don't want to do anything until I know."
    
    James looked surprised. "Okay." 
    
    "I don't want to hurt you," he continued. 
    
    "Okay, Kinky." 
    
    He almost smirked. Tom would never last that long. 
    
    *** 
    
    Sophia clambered out of bed when she heard her fathers starting to leave
    the next morning. "Where are you going?" she asked, trying to climb into
    Tom's arms. 
    
    Tom smiled down at her, surprised she was awake. They had swung by the
    Vecchio's to check on all the children and to pick up Ma since they were
    on their way to the hospital anyway and she needed a ride.  "We're just
    going to the hospital, sweetie. We'll be back in a few hours. Okay?"
    
    She went three shades of pale and clutched at his leg. "Can I go?" Three
    years old, she already associated her father's trips to the hospital
    as bad things. "Please?" 
    
    "Honey, you..." He looked at James wonderingly, unwilling to refuse so
    simple a request when she seemed so alarmed. 
    
    "Let her go. I haven't seen her in days." He leaned over to his blue-eyed
    daughter clinging to her father's leg. "Go get dressed. You can't go
    to breakfast in your pajamas." 
    
    She ran off as fast as her little legs would carry her. "And bring Woofy!"
    he called after her. 
    
    He caught Tom's eye. "Hey. Leave the wolf out of this, Kinky." 
    
    "I didn't say a word." 
    
    *** 
    
    "Hey, Frase?" Ray Kowalski looked over the brim of his borrowed glasses
    at the Mountie. "What are we going to do with all these extra versions
    of us?" 
    
    Constable Fraser paused over his breakfast. "I really hadn't considered
    that, Ray. Perhaps they'll want to return to their own world. I'm confident
    Alex will want to and I think Tom will want to go with him. And our doubles...well,
    I think they wish to return to Canada, whether here or their world I
    can't say, but I suspect they'll go wherever Livia goes." 
    
    "She's a cutie. Ya free to help me get Cecil later? I'm taking him home.
    Tom's got a doctor's appointment and he's not sure he'll be done in time."
    
    "Regretfully, no. Is Cecelia coming here or the apartment?" 
    
    "Apartment. I'll get all our stuff outta here and get everyone settled
    in. Full house again, huh?" 
    
    "Indeed. I find I rather prefer it that way." 
    
    "Me too. So long as we can close the door at night." 
    
    He smiled, taking the hint. 
    
    "C'mon, I'll drive ya." 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom sat across from Sophia in the diner, eating a plate of cheese fries
    to James' aghast stares. "How can you eat that? Breakfast isn't fries,
    Tom...." 
    
    "Says who?" Tom grinned, shoving one in James' mouth as the vampire started
    to answer. 
    
    "Ugh." Calhoun shuddered, coughing and gagging and finally spitting the
    offending fry into a napkin. He looked queasy, trying to get the taste
    out of his mouth. He was incapable of ingesting anything but blood. "Why
    can't you eat eggs like a normal person?" He threw up two hands, "Never
    mind, just answered my own question." 
    
    Tom shot him a glare as Sophia giggled, eating her cereal. "Almost ready,
    sweetie?" he asked quietly. He wanted to get this MRI over as quick as
    possible. 
    
    "Uh huh." 
    
    "Is Woofy?" asked Calhoun, indicating the plate with a cookie on it in
    front of the wolf, who was also in a booster seat. Sophia gave this question
    serious consideration, then nodded, anxious to get to the cookie herself.
    
    "Shall we go get Ma?" suggested Tom. 
    
    "Do I really have a little sister?" wondered Sophia, who was a little
    dubious as to the existence of the hithero unseen Cecelia. 
    
    Calhoun smiled and Tom almost wept at the sight. It was a smile he saw
    only outside of their bedroom only on the rarest of occasions. It was
    absolute love shining on the vampire's face and in his pale eyes. 
    
    "Yes," he promised. "Do you want to meet her?" 
    
    Sophia nodded seriously. 
    
    "When daddy is done with Mina, we'll go meet her, okay?" 
    
    "And Woofy?" 
    
    "Always Woofy." 
    
    *** 
    
    Turnbull was looking over the Necronomicon, trying to shield it from
    Vargas' glances. "Can you send us back?" Vargas finally asked. 
    
    "I believe so. We'll have to find a safe spot to perform the spell, the
    Captain has expressed...discomfort of me performing it in the parking
    lot of the 13th." 
    
    Tom looked up seriously. "I was burning when I was brought here. Won't
    I be sent back there?" 
    
    "I don't know, Tom." Turnbull answered, honestly. "I don't see how we
    could find out, but several days have passed. Presumably, they have passed
    in your world as well. Besides, I would send you all together to the
    same place, presumably Baltimore." 
    
    "Baltimore?" wondered Ray, busy fussing over Ben as he fed Livia. "Where's
    that?" 
    
    "On the eastern seaboard of the United States, Ray, between Delaware
    and Virginia." 
    
    Kowalski grinned. Worked every time. 
    
    *** 
    
    Things were a little relaxed with Welsh out of the office for a few days.
    Lt. Spears was in charge and knew better than to interfere with the actual
    running of the detective bureau. Dewey had traffic all week and Frannie
    was on maternity leave, so the bullpen was actually quiet for a change.
    
    Ray was ignoring Tallerico and the computer exorcist trying to get the
    mailer demon that had decided to move into Vecchio's computer tower (which
    produced acid-tripping screen savers and caused the printer to print
    only vowels.) He was busy trying to catch up on his mail, having once
    again being taken off of regular duty. He was only here until noon and
    he knew that Fraser would be calling like clockwork to make sure he left.
    He wondered if the Mountie would Huey at 1205 to see if he'd left. 
    
    11:00. He was actually pretty tired. Maybe coming in wasn't such a hot
    idea. He picked out the important-looking letters and put the rest aside
    for a day when he had blood pressure. He was so sleepy... 
    
    He was barely aware he put his head down. Never knew he went to sleep.
    But he did dream. 
    
    He dreamt of Wyrm. 
    
    *** 
    
    "Wyrm's thundering voice boomed through the squad room. Ray lifted his
    head and nearly fell over at what he saw. 
    
    The entire place was as it had been with Lilith had struck that Friday
    at the 13th, only ten times worse. The place was scorched. Blood covered
    the walls like graffiti. He recognized a phone number amidst the scrawl.
    It was not the same one Tom had...put there somehow. 
    
    What the hell was going on? 
    
    "Dewey?" he called out. "Huey?" 
    
    He heard a screeching noise and looked up. Bodies were moving down the
    corridor on a sort of catwalk thing attached to the ceiling. It was rusty,
    which accounted for the screeching noise, and it rained oxidized dust
    down upon him. 
    
    He blinked. "Ok. That's...weird." 
    
    "Kowalski!" The door to Welsh's office slammed open and smoke billowed
    out. He blinked again and stood up, slowly making his way into the room.
    
    A chapel like the one that had stood in Wyrm's necropolis met his eyes
    and a smell like death met his nose. A man sat on a chair near the end
    of the room, staring at him and smiling. 
    
    Those eyes.... 
    
    "Wyrm?" he laughed, shaking his head. He looked at the name plate on
    the desk. Andrew Vermis. "You've got a human form?" 
    
    "Only in his world," Vermis nodded towards something on the far wall.
    Ray turned to it and gasped. 
    
    Tom, the other Tom, hung from the ceiling on a similar railing, his arms
    secured above his head. Something was horribly wrong about him. He certainly
    wasn't conscious. 
    
    "What did ya do to him?" demanded Ray. 
    
    "I gave him a child." 
    
    "Adolph. He's a good kid. Better than the one we've got." 
    
    "What do you know of goodness?" snapped Vermis. 
    
    "Guess it depends on yer definitions. Why are ya hurting him?" 
    
    "Tom Grissom is a valuable commodity." 
    
    "He's not a slave." 
    
    "Yes he is." 
    
    "What do ya want, Wyrm?" 
    
    "Vermis," corrected the man. 
    
    "Same difference. It all comes back to something poisonous that crawls
    on its belly." 
    
    "You are a fiery one, Prince Kowalski," chuckled Vermis. 
    
    "You'll never know. Let him down." 
    
    "This is but a dream. Just an image of what I've done to the world in
    his absence. I can't hurt him in your dream, Raymond." 
    
    "Sez you. I don't trust anything named after things that eat dirt." 
    
    "I could eat your soul," hissed Vermis. 
    
    Ray smiled. "No ya can't." 
    
    He did an about-face with the intention of returning to the squad room.
    Instead the door only lead to back to the office he'd seen in Hell. Lt.
    Wyrm's stomping grounds. 
    
    "Actually, Kowalski, you're wrong. He could," corrected Wyrm. "Eat your
    soul that is. Only you'd give him heartburn." 
    
    "He's got a heart, Lieu?" wondered Ray. 
    
    "Yeah. It's his stomach that can't take Polish cooking." As he spoke
    Wyrm adjusted his tie with his tail and his long, forked tongue snaked
    out of his mouth to adjust his glasses. 
    
    "What's going on here? Is there really another you like there's another
    me?" wondered Kowalski, trying not to show how sick Wyrm was making him.
    
    "There's infinite numbers of us. We rarely cross and we never get along.
    I'm glad you told him to stick it. He's one of the disappointing me's."
    
    "Huh. Better the devil we know," said Ray. 
    
    "And love?" suggested Wyrm, suddenly with lashes that he batted at the
    detective. 
    
    "Wouldn't go that far." 
    
    "I'm crushed." 
    
    "I wish." 
    
    Wyrm snorted. "Funny guy. Wake up soon before your scathing humor does
    me in." 
    
    "Hey, Wyrm, whose phone number was that in the other 13th?" 
    
    The serpent looked over his glasses at the prince. "Some fortune cookie
    factory in Newark, I think." 
    
    "Brother..." He walked out the door and straight into Fraser Sr.'s office.
    
    "Yank!" exclaimed Fraser. 
    
    "Canada! Nice dead weasel on yer head." 
    
    "You don't belong here! You have to leave! Now! You can't be here!" 
    
    Kowalski blinked, unused to so much emotion out of the elderly man. "Wha-?
    I need a passport?" 
    
    "No! You need to wake up! Yank, if you don't, you're dead!" 
    
    He gaped. He just out-and-out gaped at the Canadian. Fraser jumped out
    of his chair and seized the detective's shoulder. He slapped him across
    the face. 
    
    "WAKE UP! NOW!" 
    
    *** 
    
    "Ray?" Fraser was shaking his shoulder when he woke up, blinking sleep
    out of his eyes. "Ray, are you all right?" 
    
    "Mmm. Yeah..." He sat up, stretching. "Just a weird dream. Whatcha doing
    here, Frase? I thought you had work."  He yawned, arching his neck and
    back in a way that worked havoc with the Mountie's self control. 
    
    "I took an early lunch," said Fraser, failing to mention that Huey had
    called a few minutes ago to tell him Kowalski was dead asleep at his
    desk. 
    
    "Cool." He paused for a minute. "Mind if we grab a third? I wanna talk
    to the other Tom. Ok?" 
    
    Not minding in the least, Fraser smiled. "Let's hurry. I think Turnbull
    figured out how to send them back. He said he would send them as soon
    as possible. What was your dream about?" 
    
    "Tell ya over lunch." 
    
    *** 
    
    Calhoun and Sophia sat in the control room while Mina and her assistant
    performed the MRI on Tom. Mina was frowning, staring hard at the readouts.
    
    "What? Is something wrong?" James spoke lightly, trying not to spook
    his daughter. 
    
    "No." Mina shook her head. "His brain waves just seem very...active."
    
    "Active?" 
    
    "On the psi level." 
    
    "Is that bad?" 
    
    Mina shook her head. "No. Just uncommon." She pulled the microphone towards
    her, and spoke into it. "Tom?" 
    
    "Yeah?" 
    
    "I want you to try something for me, ok? Try what you did this morning.
    With the stake." 
    
    Sophia clutched Woofy tighter. "Daddy, is Daddy okay?" She looked up
    at James expectantly. 
    
    "I'm sure he is," he smiled at her, completely unsure. 
    
    Satisfied, she went back to playing with her toy. James watched her closely
    for a few moments, wondering at this adorable little girl that was somehow
    his daughter. A Woloch. She was unaware that she was something special,
    that she was the rarest of the rare as far as demon types were concerned.
    One thing she did know for certain, though, was that she was adored.
    
    Mina glanced at the Elder, about to speak, when she caught the expression
    on his face as he watched his daughter. Slowly she smiled. He was enslaved
    to his children, was this Elder. 
    
    All three looked up as a chair swung across the floor, slamming into
    the side of the MRI chamber. All were wide eyed except Sophia, who smiled.
    "Did Daddy do that?" 
    
    "Uh huh." James looked at Mina, who was staring at the monitors and frowning.
    "Mina?" 
    
    She didn't look up. "Tom, do that again." The chair moved again. She
    nodded, looking at her assistant. "Did you see that?" 
    
    "Major spiking when he does that." 
    
    "I'd love to get the Initiative's records from when he blasted them,"
    Mina said, offhand. 
    
    "I'll see what I can do," James replied. "Now, what does it mean?" 
    
    "He's getting stronger. Psi wise." 
    
    *** 
    
    They were too late. 
    
    Turnbull was just closing the wormhole when they got to Hell. He turned
    to a panicked Kowalski, stunned. "Detective. What is it?" 
    
    "You sent him back?"  There was alarm in the American's face. 
    
    "Of course. They all left messages for us. Why?" 
    
    Strangely distressed, Kowalski shook his head. "I...I just...I've got
    a bad feeling." 
    
    He glanced up as Dire and Ellie joined them. This was another separation
    that was about to happen. Dire had to return to his post at St. John's.
    Turnbull and Tom had agreed to keep a close eye on Ellie. She would be
    staying in Hell while Fraser started her application to become a Canadian
    citizen. She rather shocked them all by behaving and the only conclusion
    anyone could come to was that she was truly in love with the Seeker.
    Clearly he was smitten. 
    
    Asked Turnbull, "What from?" 
    
    "I had a Wyrm-infested dream just before at work." 
    
    "Oh, dear." 
    
    Dire bowled forth into their midst. "What do you fellas say - should
    we exchange marriage vows on a roller coaster, jumping out of an airplane,
    or just say to hell with it all and get married by Elvis?" 
    
    They stared at the happy couple. Finally Fraser choked, "Elvis." 
    
    "See darling?" beamed Peter, kissing her cheek. "The Constable is a man
    of impeccable taste." 
    
    *** 
    
    They arrived in a heap right on top of Alex's desk, which wouldn't have
    been so bad if Stenos hadn't been sitting there working. 
    
    One moment the officer was minding his own business, the next he had
    a tall, brunette Canadian with a papoose on his back standing on the
    report he was writing. Stenos looked up, just as surprised as Benton.
    The next instant Ben just barely managed to get out of the way before
    Alex sprawled onto the desk, followed by a scrawny blond in dark glasses
    that landed both on Alex and Stenos, and then a werewolf. 
    
    There was much exclaiming and cursing and untangling of limbs. Stenos
    stared down at the pile of men and wolf that landed on the floor at his
    feet. 
    
    "Yo, Sarge, where the hell did you put the payroll before you went AWOL?"
    greeted the officer. 
    
    "Oh, Christ," muttered Alex, letting Stenos help him to his feet. He
    smiled at his old friend. "Have I got a story for /you/, Bri." 
    
    Stenos looked at Alex's traveling companions. Strange crew. "They under
    arrest?" 
    
    "No!" laughed Vargas. "Wait'll you see who I found! Tom!" he called,
    turning.  Ray and Ben were staring in wide-eyed horror when he faced
    them and then he realized. 
    
    Tom hadn't made it. 
    
    Alex looked around franticly. "Oh, my god..." 
    
    "You found Tom Cat?" exclaimed Stenos. "Where the hell is he?" 
    
    Panic slammed into Vargas. "Oh, God..." 
    
    Ben steadied him. "He has to be here somewhere, Alex. We'll find him."
    
    "The fire. The church," breathed Alex. 
    
    "No," insisted Ray. "He ain't dead, Vargas, we won't let him be and we're
    gonna find him." 
    
    It was then Fraser noticed his back felt very...light. 
    
    The baby... 
    
    He looked to Ray, horrified. "Livia. She's not here..." 
    
    "Oh my God..." 
    
    Ray turned completely around, tripping over Diefenbaker. "Where's Calhoun?"
    
    *** 
    
    He remembered a hard pull, feeling like he was burning inside and out
    and then nothing. 
    
    He had ended up back at the burning church, and then he hadn't been there.
    
    He woke hurting. His arms felt like the muscles were being pulled in
    five different directions, and he couldn't seem to lift his head very
    high. He blinked blurriness away and stared at the man sitting in front
    of him. 
    
    "Andrew...." He whispered, and all the memories flooded back. 
    
    Pain. A lot of pain. He'd caused a lot and been caused a lot. He remembered
    Adolph's conception. The most horrifying night of his life. The complete
    and utter fear he'd had during it. How long it had taken him to recover.
    
    He remembered the birth. 
    
    Remembered everything. 
    
    He shuddered in his bonds and felt a slimy hand trail up his leg. "No..."
    
    "You brought her as well...good. You've done well," Vermis hissed. 
    
    "I haven't done anything..." 
    
    "Haven't you?" 
    
    Tom shivered again when he heard a baby crying in the corner. "Livia...No!
    Don't hurt her. Don't hurt her. Please. Please." 
    
    "Harm the heiress of Lord Caine? Do you take me for a fool, Thomas?"
    
    *** 
    
    Seated at a table in Hell's kitchen, Turnbull shot question after question
    at Kowalski as the detective told him the details of the dream. By the
    time the Seeker was done, the detective was exhausted and felt as if
    he'd gone through one of his own interrogations. 
    
    "So what do you think?" asked Ray. 
    
    Fraser set a cup of coffee in front of him, knowing full well his lover
    was on the verge of sleep. Who knew what the next dream would herald?
    
    "I think this Vermis may want to cause Thomas some harm." 
    
    Pressed Fraser, "And Livia?" 
    
    "Like Sophia, she is a Woloch. They are very rare in our world, and often
    possessors of great power. It's Thomas that I'm worried about, if your
    dream is any indicator." 
    
    "Is there any way we can communicate with them?" 
    
    "I don't know. Perhaps Jamey could reach Calhoun, or Tom may be able
    to reach Thomas. Direct communication may not be possible, but we'll
    see..." 
    
    "Did you send Calhoun with them?" wondered Kowalski, looking at the wall
    by the door. 
    
    "Yes. Why?" 
    
    He pointed. The two Slayers turned and looked. 
    
    The black leather jacket James had coveted was hanging by the door. 
    
    *** 
    
    Grissom felt arms around his waist, hefting him up until the chain binding
    his wrists was over the hook in the railing. It was rather like the slaughter
    houses in Baltimore, Tom realized. "What're you doing?" he demanded of
    Vermis. "Please...what..." 
    
    "Don't worry, Thomas. I'm just putting Humpty Dumpty together again."
    
    He groaned as the slimy hands touched the back of his head. "No...please."
    
    "No. Welcome home." 
    
    He screamed as he felt everything that he once was click right back into
    place. It wouldn't fit with his current state of being. He didn't want
    to be Consort to the Wyrm. Not anymore. 
    
    Not ever before. 
    
    He slumped in his bonds, breathing heavily. He could feel blood running
    down his face. Had Vermis hurt him? "Andrew...don't hurt her...." 
    
    "Hmm...You have my word..." 
    
    He'd never been more frightened for anyone else in his life. 
    
    *** 
    
    James was on the phone with McGuire trying to get the files for Mina
    when he saw Woofy floating above Sophia. He gazed, perplexed and looked
    at the MRI. No waves. 
    
    That meant.... 
    
    "Mina!!" he called, hanging up on Paul. "Mina, look!" 
    
    Before she could, Tom's MRI waves jumped sky high, along with his pulse
    and respiration. "Tom? Tom, what is it? Are you all right?" She nodded
    at her assistant. "Get him out of there!" 
    
    Woofy fell to the floor as Sophia followed, barely caught by her father.
    "Sophia!" He looked at Mina, shocked. "What the hell's going on?" 
    
    *** 
    
    Mina shined her pen light into Tom's eyes, then Sophia's. They lay side
    by side on two gurneys. "They appear to be in some sort of trance." 
    
    Kowalski banged into the hospital room, carrying the jacket, followed
    by Turnbull and Fraser. "What happened?" 
    
    "They don't know," James said then stared at the jacket. "What's going
    on?" 
    
    "Vermis," Kowalski said seriously. 
    
    "Wyrm?" 
    
    "No. Vermis." 
    
    James frowned. "Tell me everything." 
    
    *** 
    
    "Where the hell is Calhoun?" 
    
    Ray, Benton, Diefenbaker, Stenos, and San Diego filled a large corner
    of the waiting room. Alex was getting a physical after all but collapsing
    at police headquarters. 
    
    "Perhaps he changed his mind at the last moment," reasoned Benton, frowning
    at Dief. The werewolf sensed a sucker for big gold eyes in Stenos and
    was being his usual, shameless self. "Or perhaps he was sent elsewhere.
    Turnbull gave us no guarantees." 
    
    The ghoulite shook his head. "I don't think he would have been able to
    hang around and see the other Tom with the other him day in and day out.
    I think he came back. Question is, where did he - I mean they - end up?"
    
    The two cops exchanged a look then turned that look upon the newcomers.
    
    "You want to be explaining this from the beginning, Raymond?" suggested
    the Greek. 
    
    San Diego shook his head. "Yeah, man. You guys are confusing me. Tom
    Cat is our friend, too, so is the sarge. We want to know what's the scoop."
    
    Ray looked at them wryly. "Got a pad? You're going to need to take notes."
    
    *** 
    
    Cold. Even for who and what he was, he was cold. All was dark and heavy
    and moving around him. He had no recollection of who he was. All he knew
    was that Lord Caine had stepped to the fore and shut down everything
    that made him James Calhoun before he could go insane. 
    
    He was buffeted by the current. Cold muddy water. Too deep and fast and
    dirty for fish. A river. He had been with the others almost back to Baltimore
    when /something/ had seized him from the path of the wormhole. 
    
    Before he knew or understood what was happening, a Swiss Fishie - as
    Prince Kowalski had called the fish Primals - was biting him and the
    ensuing poisoning rendered him helpless. He had been assaulted, chained,
    and then he was falling, water closing over his head, filling his lungs
    even though he could not drown. 
    
    God, he hated water. Even before he'd been made a Gangrel, and the Gangrel
    were infamous for their hatred of water. 
    
    Lord Caine had saved him by reducing the fire that was James Calhoun
    to a spark that the Ancient lovingly, loyally preserved. He knew of his
    vassal's aversion to being wet, just as he knew that the poison would
    rob Calhoun of the ability to make sensible decisions. They would escape.
    Calhoun's body simply had to process the poison out of his blood and
    they would have their chance. Until then, the elder needed to be kept
    locked in the trance Caine had put him in. 
    
    He kept the truth from the vampire, though. 
    
    Calhoun did not need to know yet that they had been seized by Vermis.
    
    *** 
    
    "We need Lord Caine here," stated James. 
    
    "He's with Adolph, I think," Kowalski said wearily. "Probably in the
    library in Hell." 
    
    "Adolph?" echoed the Sabbat. He stared at the prince with something akin
    to shock showing plainly on his face. "Adolph?" 
    
    Uh-oh. 
    
    "Yeeeee-ah," Kowalski said carefully. 
    
    "Adolph," repeated James. "The cathedral reject Adolph." 
    
    Oh, shit. Fraser and Turnbull were silent, not sure what to say. 
    
    Tom never spoke to James. 
    
    Adolph had asked to remain behind, afraid of being sent back to the camps
    that existed in his world. 
    
    Thrilled, Tom had assured everyone it would be all right. 
    
    Everyone but his lover, apparently. 
    
    There was nothing and no one on this planet that Major James Calhoun
    despised more than Adolph Grissom, regardless of how cutesy and sweet
    this one might be. 
    
    They watched the internal struggle for control going on in the Sabbat.
    Finally James closed his eyes and said in a completely bland voice, "Excuse
    me Prince Kowalski, Slayers, Doctor Turnbull." 
    
    He left. 
    
    Out the window. 
    
    They were on the ninth floor. 
    
    Mina blinked, about to rise, but her husband put a hand on her arm. 
    
    "Let him go, darling." 
    
    Kowalski leaned his head into his hand. "How the hell dumb is Grissom?"
    
    "I wouldn't say dumb, Ray," Fraser replied. "Impulsive and excitable,
    perhaps." 
    
    "Fraser, Cat Man hasn't got anything on a box of rocks. He does this
    constantly. I'm surprised Cal hasn't killed Grissom himself." 
    
    "Good thing he loves him," commented Turnbull. 
    
    *** 
    
    Cecil was not in any hurry for Tom and James to come and take him home.
    He was enjoying holding his namesake and he wanted to extend it as much
    as possible.  She was a pretty little thing and had a lot more hair than
    his own two had at birth. Human babies were a bit smaller than demon
    babies and he was fascinated at how delicate she her fingers appeared.
    He was so used to Brick and Blendine with their blond hair and grayish
    skin. Cecelia was rosy and her fine hair was thick and shiny. 
    
    He looked up in surprise when the window was yanked open from the outside
    and Cecilia's father stepped into the room. He was dripping from the
    rain and madder than hell. Cecil blinked, wondering what had set off
    the Sabbat this time. 
    
    Oh, who was he kidding? Jamey only came to him when Tom did something
    stupid that drove him insane. 
    
    Poor James. 
    
    "What did he do now?" 
    
    "Did he do this to you? Did he go ahead and make major decisions that
    affected you and never told you? Did he do this?" 
    
    Cecil winced. "Not really." 
    
    James didn't even hear him. "I tell that man /everything!/ He tells me
    /nothing!/" 
    
    "Adolph?" wondered the Enthos. 
    
    The Sabbat gaped. "He told /you/ and not me?" 
    
    Cecil sighed and shook his head in amazement. Tom... 
    
    "Want to hold her?" he asked brightly. "Weren't you guys bringing Sophia?
    Ma was here and left with Harding." 
    
    He caught the look on James' face as he handed over the child. Fear tingled
    down his spine, chillingly. 
    
    "Oh, god, James, what happened?" 
    
    *** 
    
    He felt like he was drowning. But he could breathe. Gods, what was happening
    to him? He could hear Sophia crying in terror and somehow that threw
    him loose of the spell that gripped him. 
    
    He woke up to Fraser peering down at him, concerned. He could hear Mina
    talking softly, soothingly to Sophia, trying to calm her down. Everything
    felt waterlogged. "Fraser?" 
    
    "Yes, Tom?" 
    
    "Get Adam. Hurry." 
    
    *** 
    
    Livia was crying and that's all he could concentrate on. His revulsion
    at what she was and what she meant to him washed away to fear of what
    he /knew/ Wyrm had planned for his daughter. 
    
    It was what Vermis had had planned for him when his parents had given
    him up oh so long ago. He was very afraid. 
    
    He tried to hush her from his position on the ceiling, sure that if Vermis
    could hear her, he would hurt her. 
    
    Alex wouldn't help him. Couldn't. No one could. 
    
    No one knew where on Earth or in Earth Vermis' lair was. Save his acolytes.
    
    And why would they help? 
    
    *** 
    
    Fraser sat beside Kowalski in the meeting room Mina had commandeered,
    wishing the detective would get some sleep but knowing it was useless
    to ask. He had called Eloise and she was bringing Adam. Mina and Turnbull
    had gone in search of Calhoun and Tom sat holding Sophia and Woofy. Kowalski
    told Tom about the dream and the Moloch looked distressed. 
    
    "You didn't tell Dead Man about Adolph, did you?" asked the prince. 
    
    Tom winced. Answer enough. 
    
    "Tom," sighed Kowalski, exasperated. Even Fraser found himself shaking
    his head.  "Don't expect him ta be real happy, Grissom." 
    
    "I thought -" 
    
    "No, ya didn't, ya bozo." The detective sighed and leaned back in his
    chair. "He's mad." 
    
    Tom nodded. "I'll deal with it." 
    
    "You said you felt as if you had drowned, but could still breathe?" asked
    Fraser, changing the topic. 
    
    "I didn't need to," corrected Tom. 
    
    Without opening his eyes, Kowalski snorted. "Gee, who's that sound like?"
    
    *** 
    
    Luckily, Adam and Eloise arrived before James did or the Sabbat might
    have hung the Moloch out the window by his toes. As it was he entered
    the room behind Turnbull with Cecilia in his arms and Cecil on his heels
    and the glare he cast Tom was nothing short of smoldering. Thank god
    for women, children, chivalry and manners. He took a seat beside his
    dozing prince, across from Tom so glaring would be easier, and settled
    down. Sophia came running over and got to hold her baby sister and Adam
    came to meet her as well. 
    
    "She's going to be very beautiful, Elder," said the vampire king, smiling.
    
    "Yeah. We got a preview with Nikko." 
    
    "Shall we begin?" suggested Turnbull. Fraser shook Kowalski awake. "Prince
    Kowalski?" 
    
    "Okay. Weird dream time. Once upon a time, there was this nice cop named
    Ray that went ta work like he was supposed ta..." 
    
    By the time he was done, his father had no color at all in his face.
    Little did Ray realize the full importance of the elder Fraser's words.
    Caine had almost lost his son today. He knew Fraser picked up on his
    anxiety because the Mountie cast him a long look. 
    
    "Adam?" whispered Fraser. 
    
    There were tears in his eyes and agony in his voice as the little boy
    replied, "We could have lost him, Soul of My Childe. He must be made
    to rest and regain his strength. He does not understand what it is we
    fight." 
    
    *** 
    
    Kowalski was asleep within seconds when Aja and Fraser started talking,
    gracelessly falling asleep with his head on Tom's shoulder. James glared
    across the table at Tom, daring him to move and disturb his prince. Tom
    had no intention of budging, fortunately, seeing as how he'd already
    given James plenty of ammunition for being pissed off in the extreme
    at him. 
    
    "Is there any way we can communicate with Alex or the others?" wondered
    Tom. "From what Ray says there's /something/, some kind of link between
    the two worlds. Can we get across?" 
    
    They all looked to Turnbull. 
    
    "I believe there's a way. You men," and he made a sweeping gesture that
    encompassed the Slayers, the Seer, and the Sabbat, "are all on some level
    psychic, if not in the normal sense then with each other. Prince Kowalski
    seems to have the least amount of control over it, seeing as how his
    dreams have been invaded. It appears he is most vulnerable when he's
    at a physical low. Tom, of course, is the truest psychic, able to communicate
    with anyone on a variety of levels-" 
    
    James snorted. Tom looked uncomfortable but didn't dare squirm. 
    
    "Where the Elder is limited to emotional displays that affect the people
    close to him and Constable Fraser seems to be limited to his father and
    Prince Kowalski." 
    
    "Huh?" Kowalski blinked sleepily at the mention of his name. 
    
    "Who said you could wake up?" demanded James. "Go back to sleep!" 
    
    The Caanite obeyed without question, flopping back down against Tom.
    
    "I believe we can utilize at least Tom's ability and quite possibly Prince
    Kowalski's in reaching your counterparts and communicating our concerns.
    Ultimately, if the dreams don't subside, we may have to return to that
    world and find the source. Clearly they can reach us. We have to figure
    out how to reach them." 
    
    *** 
    
    He woke up sitting in Vermis' chair. The Wyrm guy was gone and only Tom
    remained, still hanging from the hook on the ceiling though he did appear
    to be conscious this time. 
    
    And very afraid. 
    
    He could hear crying. A baby. 
    
    "Oh my God." Livia. Vermis had Livia. No. He made his way to the hanging
    Tom and reached up, meaning to get him down. "Tom Cat!" 
    
    "Ray..." Tom's voice was hoarse. His eyes smoldered. He could see the
    fire of Wyrm behind them and Ray did not know what it meant. He pulled
    his hand back and took another step away. "Ray...help me. Help her...please."
    
    "Where are ya?" 
    
    "My world. Vermis' temple..." Livia was wailing now, Tom's eyes darted
    around. "Please. Ray, you have to help..." 
    
    "I will. But ya gotta tell me how. I..." He took a breath. "What's Vermis
    want with ya?" 
    
    Tom's eyes lowered and Kowalski's gaze followed. The stomach of Tom's
    shirt was covered in blood and more was pooled at his feet. "A child...He
    wants a child. Like my Adam..." He looked up. "I've thwarted him thus
    far, I don't think I can any more...please..." 
    
    Kowalski took in a breath. "And Livia...what does he want with her?"
    
    The look in Tom's face was absolutely frightening. He gritted his teeth
    and arched his head back in pain as he managed to say, "The same thing!"
    
    Kowalski clapped a hand over his mouth, horrified. 
    
    "They're coming back. You have to get out of here! They can't find you
    here! Run!" 
    
    He took another step away and ran towards the doors of the chapel, intent
    on running out them and exiting this fucked up nightmare. 
    
    He fell fifty sickening, gut-wrenching feet and hit water. An undertow
    snatched him down into darkness and cold and he was too stunned to fight
    it. 
    
    When he was finally able to stop sputtering and open his eyes, he realized
    he was underwater, being swept along by the river until a dark, looming
    shape appeared in his fuzzy vision. A rock? No. A sunken ship or boat
    or something. Images assaulted him, memories of drowning even though
    he knew this was a dream. His lungs ached from the pressure and he thought
    of Fraser and the Henry Allen... 
    
    Something was next to the boat. Something that swayed slightly with the
    current. It looked like a dark bundle tied to an anchor or some kind
    of weight... 
    
    Kowalski tried to angle towards it then recoiled. 
    
    A body. Bound, chained, drowned. 
    
    He was staring at James Calhoun. 
    
    It was the other one. The one with hair and Caine. Not his retainer.
    Tom's. They were back in their world and someone had done this to him.
    
    Vermis. Had to be. Wasn't his little church just above here? He bumped
    into the vampire's body, trying to figure out if he could somehow free
    him. Was he even still alive? Well, undead. Was he? It was so hard to
    tell even when they were up and walking. And water! 
    
    They had to put him in water. Calhoun despised open bodies of water to
    the point that pools made him jumpy. Vermis must have known this. Maybe
    the shock had been too much for him... 
    
    Calhoun appeared to be dead. Really, really dead. Kowalski steadied himself
    against the body, bracing himself against the current to try to figure
    if there was something he could do. His lungs were screaming, his mind
    was starting to panic. 
    
    Suddenly Calhoun lifted his head and the ice-blue eyes snapped open.
    
    Kowalski panicked, startled out of his senses. 
    
    Then he started drowning. 
    
    *** 
    
    Fraser was the first to notice. Tom and Turnbull were deep into the details
    of psychic contact when Fraser, his mind wandering a bit, looked over
    at his red-haired lover nestled against the Moloch. He smiled faintly
    at the dynamics at the table: Kowalski perfectly content, Tom terrified
    to move and disturb him, Jamey shooting daggers at Tom every time he
    shifted slightly. 
    
    He felt a gradual heaviness upon his chest like a weight and before he
    could wonder at it, he knew where it was from. Ray. He was dreaming.
    
    Then the panic hit them both. 
    
    "RAY!" screamed a voice, and Fraser was shocked to realize it was his
    own. The fear wasn't, but his lover was running to him for safety, running
    to the man he trusted above all others. 
    
    Fraser was security and calm and protection in a world where these things
    had been denied Kowalski too often. So he took his lover's panic, tried
    to calm it, felt his own lungs ache. He recognized the feeling. 
    
    He'd felt this on the Henry Allen. 
    
    His Ray was drowning. 
    
    His companions looked up in surprise and he moved before he finished
    the scream, seizing the American by the shoulders and shaking him hard,
    trying to snap him out of it. He slapped the detective but Kowalski had
    stopped breathing entirely. 
    
    "Get him on the floor!" ordered Mina. 
    
    Fraser was already moving, dragging the ghoulite out of the chair and
    laying him on the carpet. He checked Kowalski's pulse and immediately
    started rescue breathing. One, two breaths. Sophia was crying against
    her father's shoulder. Adam stood shock still, willing his son to live.
    Tom was crushing James' hand, staring in wide-eyed fear. 
    
    A rasping, gagging cough escaped Kowalski's cold lips. Fraser drew back
    as the American began to breath on his own again, gently rolling the
    detective to his side. 
    
    "Ray, Ray, you're alright. Wake up," whispered Fraser. "Wake up. I'm
    here. I need you to wake up." 
    
    He coughed again. It was a painful sound and the best thing any of them
    had ever heard. Kowalski was trembling, fumbling for Fraser's hand, his
    eyes screwed tightly shut since his glasses had been knocked off. 
    
    "F-Frase?" he rasped. 
    
    "Right here, Ray," said the Mountie breathlessly, trying to calm his
    racing heart. 
    
    Abruptly another kind of panic seized Ray Kowalski. Fraser snatched the
    scrawny American to him, holding him in a tight embrace. Cold hands clawed
    at his uniform, desperate for the safety that was Benton Fraser. 
    
    "Tom! Tom! I saw him again! He has Livia! He raped Tom and he wants another
    Adam and he wants to have kids by Livia too and he drowned Calhoun inna
    river only he can't drown and I couldn't - Oh, God! Fraser, don' let
    me sleep! I don' wanna sleep anymore. They don' know where they are an'-"
    
    "Shhhh," murmured Fraser, shaking his head 'no' at Mina when she mouthed
    'tranquilizer?' at the Mountie. He just sat there, slowly rocking Kowalski,
    soothing him, calming him, letting him know he was loved and Fraser would
    protect him from the world. 
    
    Tom groaned and rested his head against James' shoulder. Passing the
    sniffling Sophia to her brother, the Sabbat wrapped his arms around Tom
    and held him tightly. 
    
    Fraser pressed his lips to the bright red hair then looked up at the
    Seeker. "This can't go on, Turnbull." 
    
    "Yes, sir," agreed the Son of Rachel. 
    
    *** 
    
    He opened his eyes, slowly as he heard footsteps behind him. Slimy, sucking
    footsteps. He shivered as he felt Vermis' fingers trail his back and
    climb under his shirt. "Please, don't...Andrew, I won't. I won't..."
    
    "You will. Or she will." His other hand pulled at the back of Tom's hair,
    pulling his head backwards painfully. "I'll do to her what my /brother/
    did to Nikko Calhoun. And then she will." 
    
    "No...please, don't..." 
    
    "Then give me what I want." Tom squirmed as he felt Vermis' lips against
    his. God, had their really been a time where he'd enjoyed this...thing's
    efforts? 
    
    "I can't..." 
    
    "Then I'm sorry." 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom thought quietly as Turnbull explained exactly what he wanted Tom
    to do. James had gone off to take Sophia home, she'd been to hysterical
    to leave here. 
    
    "I could try to contact them, I suppose. I'd probably only get the other
    Calhoun, and if what Ray says is true..." He let the sentence hang. "But
    I'll try." 
    
    "All right." Turnbull waited as Tom closed his eyes, trying to prepare
    himself for the search. 
    
    Almost immediately, Tom's eyes began to twitch underneath the lids. He
    let out a long breath and didn't take it back in for a long moment. "Water.
    A river. He's underwater." 
    
    Turnbull nodded. "Move upward, if you can. Can you see past the water?"
    
    Tom's eyes opened, squinting blearily. "I see...a dock." He had to take
    several more breaths. "Above that...a church. But it looks...wrong. I
    mean, it looks right, but something's wrong with it." 
    
    "Desanctified?" Turnbull whispered, remembering...."Go into the church."
    
    "Mmm." Tom closed his eyes again. "Bodies in the pews. They're...they're
    not dead. They're...covered in blood. Some of them have pieces of themselves
    missing. I don't..." He was breathing very hard. "Past that, I see him.
    I see Tom. Laid out like a...like a sacrifice." Another breath. "But
    he's not. Vermis is...oh God, he's done something to him. To Livia...She's
    older. Like Nikko." 
    
    "Calm down, Tom. What else do you see?" 
    
    But Tom had fallen slump against the couch. "Tom?" 
    
    *** 
    
    Grissom opened his eyes as Vermis finished chaining him to the stone
    alter. He would not be killed. Not yet. Vermis would just try more tactics
    to get what he wanted. He could hear Livia sobbing, and the cries of
    his daughter sounded...different. "Livia...Livia, sweetie, it's ok. Everything's
    ok...daddy's here..." 
    
    "Oh, but you're not her daddy, are you?" Vermis hissed. 
    
    Tom glared. "Yes I am." 
    
    "Could have fooled me." 
    
    *** 
    
    Stenos and San Diego didn't seem to mind in the least that Ray Kowalski
    was a former Knight and now a Gangrel. Indeed, he was the hot topic after
    how Benton found Diefenbaker and how both men came to know Tom. 
    
    They returned Alex to the precinct and Stenos went with him to see the
    captain, leaving Benton and Ray alone with San Diego and three computers.
    Immediately the search was on for one Andrew Vermis. 
    
    The results were disturbing. 
    
    To put it very, very mildly. 
    
    "This is one bad dude," breathed Jesus, staring at the print-outs. 
    
    "Hey! San Francisco! You letting civilians use our computers?" yelled
    a sergeant across the bullpen. 
    
    "No, Mr. Aryan Nation, sir, this one happens to be a Knight from Chicago
    and this is a Mounted Slayer here to help us sort out what happened to
    our Oracle." 
    
    "He moved," argued the sergeant unwisely. 
    
    "'Sic 'em, Frase," whispered Ray, and the Mountie rose to the occasion.
    
    "Actually Sergeant...Braun," said Benton, glancing at the man's name
    plate, "we have good reason to believe Tom Grissom's removal from Baltimore
    was actually the catalyst that started the Clan War that destroyed at
    least 23% of Chicago's downtown area and caused approximately seventy
    million dollars in damage." 
    
    Braun stared, afraid Benton might not stop. He gave the Knight and his
    own officer a look and muttered, "Yeah, whatever," before beating a hasty
    retreat. 
    
    *** 
    
    It was several hours later when Kowalski began to dream again. He was
    exhausted. He needed at least several days rest and like it or no, his
    body was determined to give it to him. 
    
    Fraser held him protectively as they sat together on the sofa in the
    Vecchio's living room. Ma wanted the children over for Tony Jr's birthday
    party tomorrow and they all came and just never left. 
    
    When she heard about her auxiliary son's self-imposed insomnia, she was
    in a dither and tried her best to make him comfortable, much to Vecchio's
    annoyance. 
    
    Cecil was reluctant to let Cecilia out of his sight and annoying as it
    was, James couldn't blame him and drove him to his roost to fetch the
    twins. 
    
    By the time they were done with all their running around and gathering
    of children, the house had no less than twenty-three people trying to
    find a piece of floor or furniture to sleep on with the promise of even
    more people tomorrow. 
    
    Kowalski was sleeping the sleep of total and complete physical exhaustion.
    Fraser, tired himself, nonetheless was determined to stay up a bit longer.
    He stroked the soft hair and silently prayed his lover would be spared
    more nightmares. 
    
    His prayers were heard, but the answer was 'no.' 
    
    This time Kowalski pulled the sleeping Tom down with him. 
    
    *** 
    
    They were standing in front of the altar the other Tom lay on. He looked
    even worse than before. More feral. "Ray..." His eyes went to his double's.
    "Oh. Oh God...Ray, help me..." 
    
    "What've they done?" 
    
    "Whatever they want...Ray, please. You have to find Alex. You have to
    tell him." He grit his teeth in pain. "Tell him not to come. It won't
    help. It won't." 
    
    Tom leaned forward, touching his counterpart's stomach gently. "You've
    been fighting him...good." 
    
    "I can't anymore. You see what he's done to her..." 
    
    Tom looked around and nodded. "I have a pretty good idea of where this
    place is, Ray." He looked down, wide-eyed, at Livia. She looked about
    four. "He wants her?" 
    
    "It's either her or me. Ben's Ray...he'd kill me if I let anything happen
    to her." 
    
    "You think he'd want this for /you?/" Kowalski asked incredulously. He
    didn't notice Tom starting to go to the chapel doors, nor did he notice
    that Tom was drawn to the river below. "Don't be nuts, Tom, he wants
    ya both safe. Trust me, I know him like I know myself." 
    
    *** 
    
    There. He was below. His retainer. The other James Calhoun, the one that
    had trusted him and sworn fealty to him. He was drowned, his emotions
    a faint spark, his sanity questionable. 
    
    He had to save him. 
    
    A mental call for help echoed through his mind. He needed Swiss Fish.
    They would be able to free Calhoun. He didn't know if this world had
    a Primal Higher, but he tried his best to summon help for the Sabbat
    below. 
    
    Then he leaped into the darkness. 
    
    *** 
    
    Calhoun opened his eyes, for some reason Caine was allowing him to the
    fore. Why? What... 
    
    He saw why. 
    
    In front of him swam Tom. The other Tom. Swimming, trying to keep breathing
    He felt a hand touch his cheek gently and he knew it would be all right.
    
    He saw them before Tom did. 
    
    Krakens. 
    
    They went straight for Tom. 
    
    *** 
    
    James Calhoun, after seeing that all his numerous charges were washed,
    watered, changed, and settled in for the evening, finally sat down on
    the front porch with Cecil and Cecilia and just...got to know his new
    daughter. 
    
    "Thank you again," he said to Cecil. 
    
    The Enthos smiled and fidgeted a bit. "I'm going to miss her." 
    
    "We don't live in Antarctica, Noor," he replied. "You don't..." 
    
    The elder drifted off, his expression distant. 
    
    "James?" asked Cecil, worried. "James?" 
    
    "Where is he?" whispered James. Tom. Tom was far away. Too far for him
    to reach if he needed help. "Tom? Tom? Take her, Cecil. I have to find
    him." 
    
    He handed over his daughter and vanished into the house. 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom was trying to pry at least some of Calhoun's chains loose when he
    finally saw the look of panic the vampire was sending over his shoulder.
    Tom looked back just as he felt the eel like tail of a kraken tangle
    around on of his arms. He opened his mouth to scream, drawing in water
    instead of air. He kicked and kicked hard, but the stupid water demon,
    which lived only to eat, had him firmly. 
    
    *** 
    
    Kowalski stood beside his double's daughter, trying to calm her down
    while simultaneously trying to contact her father. He wasn't sure if
    he was getting through until it dawned on him that they probably both
    had the same cell phone and therefore the same phone number. 
    
    He turned to ask Tom. His Tom. 
    
    His Tom was gone? 
    
    Had he woken up? 
    
    Something told him no. 
    
    "Run," whispered the Moloch to the dream before him. "Get out of here,
    Ray." 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom was quite sure he was drowning, unable to pull any air into his lungs.
    Nothing but water. He was pulled away from the vampire and the last thing
    he saw of James Calhoun was a pair of ice blue eyes that were at once
    frightened and angry. 
    
    Icy water rushed past him as the kraken dragged him along. Another followed,
    and Tom managed to get the impression of a creature that was a cross
    between an eel and a dragon: water bound, stupid, and perpetually hungry.
    He saw multiple rows of huge yellow teeth flashing towards him and he
    knew that dream or not, this was it, when - 
    
    The krakens both stopped. 
    
    Like dogs called off the hunt, the two sea creatures hesitated then grudgingly
    turned back the way they had come. Tom was pushed upwards by the sweep
    of one huge tail as the Krakens returned to their appointed task of guarding
    the Sabbat. 
    
    Everything was going dark when he felt a tug and a yank. 
    
    He landed on a cold surface. 
    
    "Now you owe me one, Grissom." 
    
    Xander? 
    
    He lifted his head, weakly, and stared at the dead boy. Where the hell
    was he? "What...?" 
    
    "I said, now you owe me one. Those krakens would have killed you." Xander
    tilted his head. There was something not entirely all together about
    this Xander. Was he a dream? Was he the Xander from this world? His eyes
    were wrong. Cold. Reptillian. 
    
    "But...James..." 
    
    "The Swiss Fishies'll get to him in time. They eat Krakens for breakfast."
    Xander knelt down. "You have no idea what you're dealing with, do you?"
    
    "And you do?" 
    
    "You betcha." 
    
    "Are you dead or alive?" demanded Tom. 
    
    "Does it matter?" 
    
    "Who the hell are you?" 
    
    He smiled. "I'm not who you think. I'm just borrowing one of your victims
    since Andrew saw fit to slay my body." 
    
    The truth dawned. "Wyrm..." 
    
    *** 
    
    Alex had come back in the room and was apparently on the verge of collapsing
    once again. The captain on duty had granted him bereavement leave when
    he heard the whole story and Stenos was going to take him back to his
    apartment. 
    
    "What is it?" Benton whispered quietly when he saw that Ray was even
    paler than normal. Indeed, he looked positively sick. 
    
    "Livia...I can feel her..." The sensation was new and confusing. "She's
    really scared. Vermis hurt Tom Cat." 
    
    Ignoring Alex for a moment, Benton propelled him to a chair and knelt
    before him. "Tell me. Is she nearby?" 
    
    "C-close, I think. This isn't a flash, Frase. This - this is all real.
    It's now. Oh, god, she's so scared!" 
    
    The Canadian was about to speak when Ray's cell phone rang. Both men
    jumped and Ray cursed under his breath as he opened it. "Kowalski!" 
    
    "That's my line, pal," said the voice on the line. 
    
    "Prince Kowalski?" breathed Ray. 
    
    *** 
    
    Kowalski crouched low to the ground outside the bar, trying to make himself
    as invisible as possible. 
    
    "Yeah, it's me. I can't stay long." 
    
    "Where are you?" 
    
    "In reality? I'm still asleep at Ma's. Vermis is doin' something that
    he's invading my dreams and this time I dragged Tom along fer the ride."
    
    "Prince Kowalski, Livia is gone. So is Tom. And Elder Calhoun." 
    
    "Vermis has them. I'm by a river at a bar called Mo's. I don' even know
    what town. He's got a thing that looks like a church but ain't. Calhoun
    is in the drink an-" 
    
    He broke off. A pack of Swiss Fishies had spotted him. They didn't look
    like friendlies. 
    
    "Shit! I'm spotted! We'll keep tryin'!" 
    
    He hung up and ran like hell, having no idea under the sun where he thought
    he was going, but he prayed Fraser woke him up soon. 
    
    *** 
    
    Ray stared at the phone. "We were right, Fraser. Vermis has them." 
    
    Pale faced, the Mountie nodded. "Let's get back to work." 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom woke up, remembering everything that Wyrm had told him. He held his
    arm painfully. There were burns from the Kraken on it, scalding the flesh.
    He blinked, sitting up slowly. "What..." 
    
    James threw open the door to the bedroom, and stared at him wild eyed.
    "Are you all right?" he demanded, then stared at the arm in horror. 
    
    "Where's Ray?" Tom answered quietly. 
    
    *** 
    
    Kowalski felt himself being shaken and sat up with a start. Fraser was
    watching him, smiling. "Nightmare again?" the Mountie whispered. 
    
    "Yeah...where's Tom? I pulled him in with me...where is he?" 
    
    The Higher and the Sabbat entered the living room quickly. "We may have
    bigger problems than we thought," Tom said, staring at Kowalski. 
    
    "What would that be?" he asked, interested. 
    
    "Wyrm." 
    
    "Vermis?" 
    
    "No Wyrm." 
    
    Turnbull, camped out in the lounge chair with Diefenbaker draped over
    him for a blanket, opened his eyes, staring at them. "Please explain."
    
    "Apparently Vermis' actions are effecting Wyrm himself. He killed Wyrm's...wyrm
    body. He's had to take host in a body, because Vermis has become infinitely
    more powerful." 
    
    Kowalski stared, trying to blink sleep away. "And that's...bad?" 
    
    "Very bad." Tom sat beside them. "It was Vermis who pulled the double
    switching. Not Wyrm. Vermis wants more than Wyrm ever did and ever will."
    
    "Oh. Yeah," commented James. "Wyrm just wants the whole world. What does
    Vermis want?" 
    
    The detective considered. "Microsoft?" 
    
    *** 
    
    "Got any bars called Mo's on the waterfront?" demanded Ray Kowalski of
    San Diego. 
    
    The Puerto Rican frowned. "We hardly ever go down that way, man. Stenos
    doesn't like to get his feet wet. Uh...Let me make some calls." 
    
    Ray nodded, sitting back. There were few people left in the precinct
    house. It was a lot cleaner and modern from what he'd grown used to in
    Chicago. 
    
    A hand on his shoulder. He didn't have to look to see who it was. 
    
    "We'll find them," promised Benton. "We have good friends. They'll help
    us." 
    
    His long, cool fingers covered Benton's big hand and he squeezed in appreciation
    of the Canadian's support. "I love you," he whispered. 
    
    "And I you, my own." 
    
    *** 
    
    They didn't free him. 
    
    Two Swiss Fishies against two krakens just weren't good enough odds,
    especially since this particular pair of kraken seemed more aggressive
    than normal. They were scavengers by nature and didn't actively hunt.
    Vermis drove them to new heights despite their usually lazy behavior.
    
    The poison was still in him. He needed to feed to regain some strength.
    Oh, well, it wasn't like he'd never starved before... 
    
    Lord Caine quietly took control again before Calhoun could really consider
    his position. At least he knew he was neither forgotten nor lost. They
    would come for him again. Tom would come back and save him. He had to
    hope. 
    
    There was absolutely nothing else he could do. 
    
    *** 
    
    "We can do things from the dreams, can't we?" Kowalski suddenly asked,
    aware that he'd been able to touch Tom and Livia. 
    
    Tom nodded. "Problem is, we can also get hurt in them." He pointed to
    his arms. "And you nearly died once." 
    
    "Can we fix that? Is there any way?" 
    
    Turnbull leaned forward, thinking. He stared at the floor and then looked
    up. "The Necronomicon is the gateway to Wyrm's world. We need to find
    the gateway to Vermis'. I'm confident that we could begin to manipulate
    things to our advantage if we had access to it." 
    
    James, who had been silent up until now, suddenly spoke up. "It's the
    other Tom." 
    
    They all stared at him, shocked. "What?" Kowalski finally asked, unable
    to hold back his confusion. 
    
    "It's the Oracle. He's the gateway. Think about it. He won't do Vermis'
    bidding, yet the guy hasn't killed him and aged Livia all the way up."
    He leaned forward, nodding. "And the chapel. The hospital chapel. He
    went in, and the place was desanctified, remember?" 
    
    "If we can't get him..." Fraser stood. "The chapel. We can access from
    the chapel." 
    
    Tom suddenly looked rather queasy. "Um...guys?" 
    
    "Oh, god, you're pregnant," said James, recognizing that look. 
    
    The Higher shook his head, giving his lover a shove. "Whatever Vermis
    is doing to Tom now is really not good." 
    
    "Let's go," ordered Fraser, snatching up his Stetson. 
    
    *** 
    
    Grissom cried out as he felt Vermis go to work again, digging claws deep
    in his belly. He couldn't fight anymore. He could feel it. If he fought,
    he would be just as well giving Livia up to Vermis. 
    
    He couldn't do that. 
    
    /I'm sorry, Alex.../ he thought, and let go. 
    
    *** 
    
    "You guys really for real?" wondered Stenos. 
    
    Benton frowned, not certain how to take that. Beside him, Ray dug into
    his pizza. The novelty of food still hadn't worn off. 
    
    "Yeah, Stenos, we're as real as you are. This is our home." 
    
    "Well, not Baltimore," corrected the Mountie. "How is Alex?" 
    
    Stenos pursed his lips. "Worse than the first time he thought Tom died."
    
    Ray sighed, wishing he hadn't yelled at Tom even though it had helped.
    "God, Frase, we should've stayed there." 
    
    "This is our home, Ray." 
    
    "Yeah, but..." 
    
    "I know. But Tom chose to take the risk as well. He knew what might happen."
    
    "Where on earth is San Diego?" sighed Ray. 
    
    "California." 
    
    "The cop, not the city, Fraser." 
    
    "Ah." 
    
    *** 
    
    He lay on the floor of the chapel, curled in a fetal position and shaking
    hard. His whole body ached but his stomach felt like it was on fire.
    This...this feeling. He remembered this pain. 
    
    He tried and failed to curl further in on himself, tears running down
    his face as he heard Livia cry harder. Wyrm was aging her again, he could
    feel it. 
    
    "Why?" he asked, lifting his head as best he could without the pounding
    headache starting again. "You promised." 
    
    "When will you learn not to trust me, Thomas?" Vermis smiled at him patronizingly.
    
    "Daddy...?" She was talking. Oh God. She sounded at least sixteen now.
    
    "Please stop. I'll do whatever you want...don't hurt her." 
    
    "I'm going to do that anyway, Thomas." 
    
    *** 
    
    Benton was standing beside Ray, pouring more coffee while they waited
    for San Diego, when the detective suddenly dropped his mug and stared
    out the window. "Livia..." he whispered, closing his eyes. "No." 
    
    "What is it, Ray?" 
    
    "It's Livia. Something's wrong. Something's happening to her." 
    
    "Is she hurt?" Benton helped Ray sit. "Can you focus in on her? Maybe
    we can find her that way." 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom sat in the seat his double had sat in and concentrated, Kowalski
    sitting beside him. They stared at the crucifix on the far wall, thinking.
    "I'm not exactly sure how to do this, Ray." 
    
    "Turnbull said to just let it take us in. Just...fall asleep." 
    
    "Easier said than done." 
    
    "Sez you," yawned Kowalski. "I am beat." He glanced back at their three
    companions. James was intrigued at being in a chapel again. He hadn't
    stepped foot in one since the Second World War. Fraser smiled, knowing
    Ray was about to drop off and Turnbull was leafing through the Necronomicon.
    
    "We ever gonna have normal lives?" wondered Kowalski. 
    
    "I guess this is normal for us." 
    
    The detective sighed. He'd been looking forward to Tony Jr's birthday
    party for a month. "It seems to follow us." 
    
    "We're the chosen ones," Tom said softly, sympathizing with the ghoulite.
    
    Kowalski leaned on his hand, lounging on a pew. "I want to go away with
    Fraser one of these days. Someplace warm. Maybe with a beach. Palm trees.
    Maybe a cruise. No Wyrms. No Hell. Nobody tryin' ta use us or control
    us or make us fight their wars. Just me an' Fraser an' sunshine." 
    
    Tom smiled as he realized how much he loved this man. He would love to
    have Ray Kowalski as a brother. In many ways, he did. He leaned his head
    back, letting his mind wander. 
    
    "I'd like to go to Europe with James. Anywhere but France or Poland,
    I guess. I'd like to take a ride down the Rhine. See the castles." 
    
    "Take 'em to Transylvania." 
    
    "He wouldn't get it. His unit in France used to call him 'Count' and
    he didn't figure it out until after Paris fell." 
    
    They were both too tired to laugh as hard as they wanted, but Kowalski
    wiped a tear from his eye, shaking his head.  "He is a piece of work."
    
    "I heard that." 
    
    The ghoulite snickered. He loved anything that could get his retainer
    going. 
    
    "I just want it to be...quiet," Kowalski said in the hush that followed.
    "I just...don't wanna be scared for a while." 
    
    *** 
    
    Sitting in the back of the chapel, Fraser bent his head to hide the tears
    he knew were brimming in his eyes. He felt the same way, though he was
    too stoic to say as much aloud. He glanced at the two men close to him,
    Seeker and Sabbat, and wondered if they ever felt the same. 
    
    James was so steeped in blood, the eternal warrior, yet Fraser knew he
    longed for peace, a chance to rest. To be a father to his daughters.
    It didn't seem like too much to ask. 
    
    And Turnbull, the Seeker. So many tasks set before him, so much asked
    of him.  He rarely saw his wife, rarely had a chance to go home. 
    
    And these sacrifices were made without complaint. As if in unspoken agreement
    they set their selves aside for the sake of all they had to lose. 
    
    Fraser watched as his American lover gradually nodded off, promising
    himself that at the first opportunity, it would just be him and Ray and
    sunshine. 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom and Kowalski were finally asleep, half collapsed on the pews and
    half sagging on each other. The dreams took them back to Vermis' chapel.
    Back to Tom's double, and back to Livia. 
    
    Grissom was collapsed on the floor of the church, shuddering and curling
    in on himself. The place seemed empty and it reeked of blood and death.
    Ray was at the Oracle's side in an instant, gently touching his arm.
    "Hey. You okay? We're gonna get you outta here..." 
    
    "No...no, it doesn't matter anymore..." Tom whispered hoarsely. "He got
    what he wanted. From both of us." 
    
    Tom and Kowalski followed Grissom's gaze to the stone alter. On top lay
    Livia, completely unconscious and almost as pale as driven snow. Blood
    soaked her white gown. Tom slowly made his way to the teenaged girl.
    She looked about eighteen years old now, with strawberry blond hair and
    a face that clearly showed her Moloch/vampire heritage. He could feel
    the child within her and shuddered. 
    
    "Ray, we have to get them o..." He gagged as a hand darted up from the
    alter, grabbing him around the neck. 
    
    "What makes you think I want to get out?" Livia hissed and threw him
    aside. 
    
    "Run..." Grissom whispered as his daughter moved towards them. It was
    unnerving to see anything so young and lovely look so menacing. "Please,
    just run...." 
    
    Kowalski shook his head, grabbing the Oracle tightly. "Okay, Frase..."
    he whispered. "Anytime you wanna wake us up..." 
    
    *** 
    
    Fraser noticed the odd motions Kowalski was making and sat up straighter.
    He nodded, looking to Turnbull. "It's time. Wake them up." 
    
    The Seeker obeyed, leaning over the men and giving them a shake. "Ray!
    Tom! Wake up! Wake up! Now!" 
    
    Neither man stirred. Fraser felt unaccustomed fear swell in his breast.
    God, what if they couldn't...? 
    
    "Ray! Ray!" Fraser's hand lashed out, slapping his lover across the face.
    
    "Shit!" hissed James. He leaped front and center and belted Tom soundly.
    Nothing. They wouldn't wake up. 
    
    "Do it psychically," ordered Turnbull, refraining from their panic. 
    
    Fraser closed his eyes, his mind searching for the Chicagoan's electric
    presence. Fear. More for his friends than for himself. Confusion. Kowalski
    wanted to wake up, but like a drowning man, he couldn't fight his way
    to the surface of his own consciousness. 
    
    /Ray.../ 
    
    Fraser pulled him gently to the fore, urging him to open his eyes...
    
    *** 
    
    Nowhere near as subtle as the Mountie, James seized Tom's arms and sat
    him up straight, staring at him intently. His link with Tom was much
    closer to the surface than Fraser's and Kowalski's and nowhere near as
    delicate. 
    
    /Wake up now, Tom! NOW! Open your damned eyes and look at me!/ 
    
    He was not prepared to have two Tom's obey his command. 
    
    Neither he nor Fraser were prepared for Kowalski to completely disappear.
    
    Grissom moaned, doubling over as the child in him squirmed. "Oh God...
    " He gasped as a fresh wave of pain hit him, and fell over, barely caught
    by the shaken Mountie. 
    
    *** 
    
    Livia made her way to the stunned detective, both vampire and Moloch
    fangs showing. Was this what they had to look forward to with Sophia?
    God, he hoped not. He scooted across the floor, trying to get away from
    her. 
    
    "Where ya going, Detective?" She smiled then hissed. "Got a date?" 
    
    He shuddered as she reached for him, roughly pulling him to his feet.
    "Livia, don't...." 
    
    "Don't what?" She grinned and snarled, trying to nip at his neck. "You
    afraid of me, Ray?" 
    
    "Afraid? Naw. Pissed? Sure. Why are you doing this?" He tried to pull
    loose and failed. At least Tom had gotten out. Maybe he could open a
    wormhole and get him the hell out of here...or maybe not. "Your father
    wouldn't stand for it?" 
    
    "My father?" she snarled again. "Which one? The Moloch whore, or the
    Mountie's boy toy?" 
    
    His eyes narrowed and she was about to attack when he heard someone clear
    his throat. 
    
    "Livia. What would your father say? Playing with your food..." Vermis
    shook his head at her and she backed down. 
    
    A bit. 
    
    Kowalski resisted the urge to stomp on her bare foot and shook his arm
    loose of her hold. "Helluva way to operate, pal. You Vermis?" 
    
    "I am. And you are the lone Caanite Prince, Kowalski. Welcome to my world."
    
    "Anyone ever tell ya yer a sick fucker?" snapped Kowalski. 
    
    Livia hissed but he ignored her. He was trying to get his terror under
    control. Had he woken up? Were the others safe? What about Fraser? How
    could he get back to his own home if he was awake now? 
    
    Vermis chuckled but the mirth in his voice was not reflected in his cold,
    hard eyes. "Not in such plain and refreshing terms, Prince Kowalski."
    
    "What do ya want with us?" demanded the detective. "Why did ya hurt Tom,
    hurt Livia-" 
    
    The Woloch let out a growl. "He didn't-" 
    
    "Livia," warned Vermis, holding up a hand. 
    
    "What the hell are ya going ta get by raping a baby? Huh? I don' care
    how old she looks, she's just an infant!" 
    
    "What I will get, Prince of the Caanites, is a body strong enough to
    house this spirit. Wolochs are rare and always powerful. I must thank
    your counterpart for his role in my conquering Heaven." 
    
    "Ya ain't there yet, pal." He shuddered as Vermis caressed Livia's cheek
    with slimy fingers. 
    
    "Soon, Kowalski. Very soon. And neither you nor my brother will stop
    me." He looked at the prince with contempt. "Oh, you can go." 
    
    "Huh?" He could WHAT? 
    
    "You can go. You can touch me. Not now. You have no idea if your friends
    are safe. You wouldn't dare. So go." 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom helped Mina get his counterpart onto a gurney, and felt for the child.
    He sighed. "It's like Vermis is speeding up the growth of this child,
    too." 
    
    Before she could answer him, he felt a sudden shock of dizziness and
    grabbed onto Fraser's shoulder for support. 
    
    It didn't work. 
    
    "Tom!" James shouted, seizing his lover before he could hit the floor.
    "Tom?" 
    
    "He's alright," Turnbull said quietly. He recognized the symptoms. He
    remembered Wyrm calling Kowalski much the same way so many years ago.
    "He'll be fine." He nodded towards Grissom. "It's him I'm worried about."
    
    *** 
    
    Kowalski was halfway towards the police station when he finally stopped
    running and pulled out his cell phone to dial. He got the main number
    for the police and hopped from operator to operator until he gradually
    narrowed down the search and ended up at Alex's desk. "Vargas?" 
    
    "Fraser, actually. Prince Kowalski?" The Mountie sounded suitably shocked.
    
    "Yeah, Ben, I'm back. Listen, where's Ray?" 
    
    "Actually, Prince Kowalski, Ray's a little..." 
    
    "Indisposed? Gotcha. Look, I seem to have um...gotten stuck here. I'm
    on my way. And I've got some news." 
    
    "Good news, I trust." 
    
    Kowalski was silent for a moment. "I suppose. If you were an evil slimy
    worm thing." 
    
    "Oh. Oh dear." 
    
    "Ask one of them clowns ta send me a marked car. I'm on...the corner
    of Bay and Christo. I'll come out when I see the car." 
    
    *** 
    
    Adolph hovered over his father, darting back and forth while Mina and
    Turnbull examined him in turn. "She's not very powerful," he finally
    commented, coming to land on the counter. 
    
    Turnbull looked up. "What?" 
    
    "The child. She's not powerful at all." 
    
    "Explain," ordered Mina. 
    
    Adolph, who seemed rather taken by Mina's pretty face and intelligence,
    cocked his head. "The combination of Moloch/human/Wyrm doesn't produce
    the aggressiveness Vermis seems to want." He shrugged. "My father's child
    seems even less powerful than I, though perhaps as she grows she'll acquire
    some." 
    
    "She?" wondered Turnbull with a smile. 
    
    "Yes." He smiled down at his father. "She wants to be named Eva, if that's
    alright with you, daddy." 
    
    *** 
    
    James had claimed him, dragging him through the quiet hospital until
    he found a deserted room well out of earshot of anyone stuck on the graveyard
    shift.  Locking the door, the vampire yanked Tom into a kiss so intense
    the Moloch's knees were weak and he was thoroughly aroused by the time
    he was released. 
    
    "Wha wuz zat for?" he slurred, reeling and trying to get his brain back
    into gear. 
    
    James was kissing his throat, his cool hands pulling Tom closer as he
    whispered, "For frightening me." 
    
    "I scared you?" blinked Tom, impressed. 
    
    "You do have that power." 
    
    *** 
    
    Benton Fraser sat alone in the chapel, praying. He wasn't precisely sure
    whom he prayed to, nor if they could hear him in this place that was
    no longer sanctified, but he nonetheless sat still and quiet and prayed
    for his lover's return. 
    
    He didn't know what to do. Dare they venture into Vermis' version of
    reality and seek to find his Ray? Would he return? What did they owe
    those men from another reality to risk their own lives? He tried not
    to blame the Moloch Tom Grissom, but he couldn't deny the anger in his
    breast at the simple knowledge that Tom was here and safe and cared for
    and Kowalski had been left in deadly peril. 
    
    //Son.// 
    
    "Dad. I've missed you." 
    
    //I've been helping my father and father-in-law with their taxes. This
    Vermis is bad news.// 
    
    "Dad? We haven't known a moment's peace in ages. What did we do so wrong
    that this always happens to us?" 
    
    A sigh escaped his father as the old Mountie sat down on the pew behind
    him. //It's not what you've done wrong, Benton, it's what you've done
    right. Your friends and you have effectively stood against evil and even
    fought it to a draw. You won't know any peace, I'm afraid, until this
    is all done.// 
    
    "We won't be young forever, Dad." 
    
    //Wyrm won't live forever, either.// 
    
    "Do you know where Ray is?" 
    
    //Another here and now.// 
    
    "Can you get there? Can you find him?" 
    
    //No. I tried. I don't know how to get there.// 
    
    Fraser nodded, resigning himself. 
    
    //Benton, no one else can do what you men are doing. Don't think your
    efforts aren't noticed or don't have any long-lasting results. Trust
    me, son, the ones that need to know what you're doing know. I have all
    the clippings.// 
    
    "You have news papers?" 
    
    //We have taxes, don't we?// 
    
    *** 
    
    Ray jumped up from his seat when his counterpart finally got in the station.
    Alex was there in civilian clothes, looking pale and wasted. He had a
    dim glimmering of hope in his pale eyes when he recognized the Knight
    of Chicago. Then the ghoulite that had claimed squatter's rights to his
    desk pushed forward. 
    
    "Is she okay?" Ray demanded. "Are /they/ okay?" he amended after a look
    from Ben. "Prince Kowalski?" 
    
    "Siddown for this, okay?" Kowalski waited until Ray obeyed and continued.
    He swallowed, glancing at Alex to obey. Two other cops, a burly, dark-haired
    giant and a smaller Hispanic man hovered close to Alex. Kowalski was
    glad to see he had close friends. He would need them. 
    
    "Tom's...Vermis raped him. Put another kid in him. He's...gone. Back
    to my world, I think. Well, I can't think where else he would've gone
    and my Tom Grissom is gone, too." 
    
    Ray barely registered it. Vargas, however had gone ten different shades
    of pale and looked ready to lose his lunch. "And Livia?" 
    
    "Vermis aged her. About eighteen years. Like Nikko. She's...gone over
    to his side." 
    
    "What?" Ray's tone was dangerous. 
    
    "He's got her, Ray," whispered Kowalski. "She's eighteen or so now. He
    can do that. Wyrm did it to Nikko." 
    
    "What did he do to her? He raped Tom again. What did he do to my daughter?"
    
    Agony. His voice failed him. How to tell a man his daughter has been
    raped by a monster... 
    
    "No," whispered Ray, shaking his head. "No. No. NO!" 
    
    He bolted out of his chair, but Benton snatched him into a tight embrace
    and would not release him no matter how hard he struggled and fought
    the Mountie. Ray was screaming, fighting his lover's hold as he tried
    to get to Kowalski, refusing to believe the truth. 
    
    "Oh, man," breathed the Hispanic cop. 
    
    "Stenos, get them to interrogation room one," ordered Vargas. "Zeus,
    give him a hand." 
    
    Kowalski sank into the chair Ray had occupied and let the day catch up
    with him. It was a while before he could look at Vargas. 
    
    "Mina and Turnbull will be taking care of him. He's alive. He wasn't
    burned up. Vermis grabbed them on the way." 
    
    "What about Calhoun?" 
    
    Oh, god. He'd forgotten about the Elder... 
    
    "Vermis...grabbed him, too." 
    
    "Where is he?" 
    
    "What's the name of this river?" 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom and James lay in the hospital bed, the vampire sleeping soundly and
    exhaustedly while Tom watched. He couldn't remember whether he'd told
    the Sabbat about his spontaneously regrowing sacs. He supposed it didn't
    matter. 
    
    If he was still a vampire, it wasn't like he could reproduce anyway.
    
    Could he? It wasn't as if James should be able to father a child... 
    
    He eyed the unsuspecting man beside him. So beautiful. He wanted nothing
    more than to have more children with him. The ones they had were so beautiful.
    So sweet and kind and James was nothing short of besotted with fatherhood.
    
    Tom leaned over and kissed him, shrugging away memories of Lilith's attack
    upon him. Upon them both. He wondered if James would be able to put the
    past behind him as easily. 
    
    He felt fingers stroking his hair and smiled. "You're awake?" 
    
    "With you pawing all over me?" James grinned and pulled him down. "Of
    course." 
    
    "Ever done it in a hospital before?" teased Tom, kissing him. 
    
    "Yeah. Ever done it with a vampire before?" 
    
    "Lots of times." 
    
    "Ever done it /as/ a vampire?" 
    
    "Not yet." 
    
    "Then brace yourself, Kinky, you're in for a ride." 
    
    *** 
    
    Adolph held his father's hand tightly in his clawed grip, listening to
    his unborn sister dream and making sure his father was still well. 
    
    He'd been sorry when his father hadn't stayed behind and was glad when
    he'd come back. He wished the circumstances were different, though. Maybe
    he would stay this time. He knew that for himself, he could never go
    back. Not to that regime. Life in the camps had been brutal. He never
    wanted to go back there. 
    
    The other Tom he liked very well. He seemed to dote on all his children
    and clearly and completely accepted Adolph as one of his own. The Sabbat
    was another story... 
    
    Eva shifted, frightened by her dreams of coldness and dark. Adolph reached
    for her, comforting her alarm and banishing her fears. Little Eva. He
    would protect her. Protect them both. 
    
    "Adolph?" His father's voice was so weak, he was worried. "You can feel
    her?" 
    
    "I can. She loves you, daddy. She won't hurt you." 
    
    "I know..." Grissom closed his eyes. "I don't feel very well." 
    
    "I'll get Dr. Turnbull." Adolph started to go, but Tom wouldn't let him.
    "What is it?" 
    
    "Don't go..." 
    
    "Ok. I won't." He reached for the call button with his tail. 
    
    *** 
    
    Turnbull entered the chapel and watched Fraser continue to pray. "Constable..."
    he finally whispered. "It's dangerous in here. The gateway to Vermis..."
    
    "I don't care." Fraser was convinced if Ray were going to return it would
    be here. He wouldn't leave for anything that was not an emergency. 
    
    "We'll get him back. I promise you." 
    
    "Turnbull?" 
    
    "Yes, sir?" 
    
    "What would you say about going after him?" 
    
    "I would say it's too risky. Look at what Vermis did already." 
    
    "I'm willing to risk that. I need him back." 
    
    "I know, sir. Let me talk to Thomas when he recovers a bit." 
    
    "Tom said Livia was attacking them, Turnbull." 
    
    "I know. Benton," said the constable, and Fraser realized it was Turnbull,
    not the Seeker, using his given name, "we will find him. And we will
    help the others. Trust me, please." 
    
    "I do. Thank you." 
    
    *** 
    
    Benton tightened his hug on Ray as Kowalski entered the interrogation
    room. "She's gone over to Vermis, you said?" 
    
    "Yeah. She...she wants what he's done to her." 
    
    Ray had to choke back a sob. Shaking his blonde head, he paced the room
    like an animal in a cage. "That can't be. Yer makin' that shit up!" 
    
    "Ray," Benton soothed. He didn't say anything else. Nothing else was
    necessary. They both knew he was in denial and no one could blame him.
    
    Kowalski looked up as the big cop entered the room. He carried a tray
    of drinks and a bag of food. "Alex sent me out," he explained. "Now you're...?"
    
    "Ray Kowalski. Chicago PD." His hand was lost in the man's huge paw.
    
    "Brian Stenos. Better eat. You look like you need it. Ben? Ray? You guys
    haven't eaten either." 
    
    Alex joined them in the small room, followed by Diefenbaker and San Diego.
    Dief was very happy to see another source of junk food and gave Kowalski
    a good wet-down before scavenging for scraps. 
    
    "The dive team won't be able to come out until tomorrow afternoon," said
    Alex.  He was picking at his sandwich. 
    
    "Can ya get a search warrant on Vermis' place?" asked Kowalski. 
    
    "If he didn't all but own this whole town, yeah," said Alex. "At this
    rate, I won't be able to get a warrant. Trust me on this one, Prince
    Kowalski. Andrew Vermi is the name in Baltimore. We won't get a warrant
    from any judge here and frankly, it'll be safer for everyone if we don't
    call that kind of attention to ourselves." 
    
    "What can we do?" Benton asked, watching both Rays closer than a mother
    hen to make sure they ate. 
    
    "We can be a little overt. We're all police officers here. We know the
    game. We know the risks and the consequences."  He looked at his two
    friends threateningly. "You two are going to listen to orders for once
    in your careers. You've got too much to lose. When I say back off, you'd
    better listen." 
    
    "Oh, yeah, sure," agreed Stenos. 
    
    "Right," added San Diego. Neither man even tried to be convincing. 
    
    "Prince Kowalski, can you find Vermis' base again?" 
    
    "Yeah. Got maps?" 
    
    "Plenty. Zeus, would you go get them?" 
    
    Jesus rose and began teasing Stenos. "I gotta Greek name, I gotta Greek
    name!" before he left. 
    
    "Got a plan?" wondered Kowalski. 
    
    Sgt. Vargas gave him a wry smile. "Not yet." 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom was lying next to James when someone started pounding on the door.
    "How do they find us?" he asked James, grinning. 
    
    "Did you leave a trail of breadcrumbs /again/?" the vampire teased back,
    chuckling when Tom bopped him with a paper-thin pillow. He grabbed the
    Moloch, kissing him. "I love you." 
    
    "Mm. Love you too. Tell 'em to go away?" 
    
    *** 
    
    Turnbull stood poised to knock again when the door opened a crack and
    Jamey peeked out. 
    
    "Is the building burning down?" 
    
    "N-no." 
    
    "Is the fucking world ending /right now/?" 
    
    "No." 
    
    "Come back in an hour." The door slammed. 
    
    Turnbull sighed, leaning against the wall to wait. 
    
    *** 
    
    Fraser looked up as Mina entered the church. "Constable? We're having
    some complications with the Moloch double. He's...he's asking for you."
    
    He looked at her strangely. "For me?" 
    
    She shrugged. "At this point, I'm not sure he has any idea where he is."
    
    *** 
    
    Adolph watched the oxygen mask over his father's face mist up slowly
    then cloud down. Eva was coming now and for some reason this birth was
    doing some harm to his father. He didn't understand it. Had this happened
    at his birth? 
    
    As if he'd heard the thought, Tom's eyes slowly opened and he reached
    up to touch his son's face gently. His only living son. The only child
    who loved him, despite the fact he had not been able to protect him./
    /I love you...// 
    
    "I love you too, daddy." Adolph squeezed his father's hand, gently. "And
    she loves you." 
    
    //Yes...// His eyes closed, slowly as pain waved through again. 
    
    *** 
    
    He was afraid. 
    
    The emotion was relatively new and it interested him greatly, but he
    could no longer deny that he, James Calhoun, was afraid. What tiny bit
    Lord Caine allowed to be aware was aware of only one thing: fear. 
    
    Had Caine not been there with him he would not have survived this ordeal
    with his sanity intact. The ancient held him, comforted him, and would
    not allow Calhoun's self to overwhelm his own mind. 
    
    Stone cold. Cold as death. 
    
    //Sleep, James//, whispered Caine. //Do not doubt that we will survive
    this. Do not doubt that you are brave. I will stay with you, my childe.//
    
    *** 
    
    James let out a mighty yawn. 
    
    "Hey!" 
    
    "Hmm?" he wondered then yawned again. 
    
    "Am I boring you?" 
    
    "Nope. No idea where that came from. I'm just suddenly...beat." 
    
    "You just woke up!" 
    
    "...wore me out..." 
    
    "Hey!" 
    
    It was no use. James was dead asleep. 
    
    *** 
    
    Fraser hesitated. God, how much time had they spent in this wing of the
    hospital? Thomas lay in the bed, as pale as the sheets beneath him. He
    looked fragile and weak, as if he would crumble at a touch. Fraser was
    so used to the other Tom, the Slayer Born. There was really no comparing
    the two men. Both had been beaten, but this one had been broken. 
    
    Adolph looked up from his father's bedside and smiled at the Mountie.
    
    "He asked for you. He needs to speak to you, Constable." 
    
    As if he had all the time in the world, as if the love of his life wasn't
    in mortal peril, as if he wasn't sitting next to a duplicate of a demon
    that had tried to destroy everything and everyone he loved, Benton Fraser
    pulled up a chair beside Adolph and took Tom's sweaty hand in his own.
    
    "Thomas?" 
    
    "I'm sorry," he whispered so softly Fraser had to lean close to hear.
    "I'm sorry I'm here instead of him. I'm sorry." 
    
    A wave of pity swept over Fraser, carrying away his resentment. Of course
    Thomas had no choice in this. He had been a pawn all his life. Even his
    brief glimpse of freedom had been snatched away. 
    
    "I'm sorry I wasn't much help before," he continued. "I was scared. So
    scared. Nobody but Alex and the PD ever treated me like I was worth anything.
    You people didn't ask anything of me but help and I wish I hadn't said
    no at first." 
    
    "Tom." He smoothed the Moloch's sweaty hair. "You had every reason to
    be afraid.  We don't hold it against you at all." 
    
    "Ray does...Ben's Ray." Grissom sounded miserable. 
    
    "I doubt that." 
    
    "I don't. But thanks." 
    
    "How do you feel?" Fraser asked, quietly. 
    
    "Like hell." He sounded like hell too. 
    
    Fraser fetched him a glass of water and held it for him as he drank.
    
    "Is it soon?" 
    
    "Oh, yeah." 
    
    "Would you like me to stay?" 
    
    Tears stood in his eyes. "Would you?" 
    
    Fraser smiled, knowing he could not abandon this man in his hour of need.
    "Of course." 
    
    *** 
    
    Livia stood next to Vermis, watching over the Waterfront. "They'll come
    for him soon." 
    
    "Yes." He held her hand tightly. "They will. Let them." He looked towards
    her and chuckled at her confusion. "With you at my side and this child...The
    heir to Caine and her child. They wouldn't dare raise a weapon to you."
    
    "What about you?" she questioned. 
    
    "I'll transfer to your child. Let them fight me." He smiled at her, and
    the child still in her mind was frightened of it. "I don't think they've
    even considered what I mean." 
    
    "I don't understand." 
    
    "My brother is trapped in a human form at this time. Before I struck,
    he was trapped within the earth. I, however, am not so hindered. I'm
    free. And I don't believe our dear friends realize that. Then again,
    I think their psychic will be a little distracted to notice." 
    
    "Oh?" 
    
    "I've arranged for him to stay exactly where he is. If he's wise." 
    
    *** 
    
    "How's he doing?" Tom asked quietly and watched his double. The Oracle's
    pain seemed to have ebbed slightly, but it was obvious it was close to
    being time. "He looks bad." 
    
    "Mina isn't sure he'll ever be able to return to his world. He's...she
    says he's adapting so well to this world..." Fraser squeezed the Moloch's
    hand lightly. 
    
    "Is that bad?" 
    
    "I don't know. He seems to be less vulnerable here. Vermis is more active
    than Wyrm. Perhaps he's impatient." 
    
    "He's also less direct." 
    
    "Indeed." Fraser wiped the Oracle's face with a cloth. "Where is Jamey?"
    
    "Taking a nap?" 
    
    *** 
    
    "First things first, gentlemen.  You three are coming home with me and
    getting some rest." 
    
    There was the light of open rebellion in Ray's eyes, but Kowalski saw
    the sense of Vargas' decision. He hadn't really done all that much and
    he was exhausted. 
    
    "What about Dead - I mean what about Calhoun?" 
    
    "We'll start everything tomorrow. It's almost ten. Another day in the
    drink won't hurt him. Come on..." 
    
    *** 
    
    Watching Fraser tend his double, Tom Grissom suddenly twinged. 
    
    His stomach hurt, a sharp, jabbing sensation. Familiar. Not unwelcome.
    He continued watching, too stunned by the sudden rush of heat that seemed
    to engulf him to do anything more. 
    
    He knew this feeling. 
    
    Very well, in fact. 
    
    He'd just conceived. 
    
    He was pregnant again. 
    
    He felt arms go around him from behind and James Calhoun squeezed him
    lightly, sleepily nuzzling his neck as he pulled the Moloch in close.
    He rested his chin on Tom's shoulder and sighed contentedly as Tom ran
    his long fingers through his hair. With an indulgent and loving smile,
    glad to see the vampire on his feet again, Tom whispered, "James." 
    
    "What...?" Calhoun frowned at his lover, recognizing that tone of voice,
    and shook his head. "Jesus, Tom. You're more fertile than a pack of rabbits."
    He let out another sigh, only this one was not contented. "God, we'll
    have to find a surrogate-" 
    
    "Uh-uh," he answered. 
    
    "Excuse me, Higher Grissom, but you're incapable of carrying anymore
    children, are you not?" 
    
    "Matter of fact, I can, pal. Remember, I'm sorta undead. The sacks regenerated.
    I'm back up to fighting trim." 
    
    Calhoun blinked a few times at that. "We are never having sex again."
    
    *** 
    
    Ray lay wide awake next to Ben, unable to sleep for fear that he'd wake
    back up to the horror that had just recently become his life. 
    
    His daughter. Evil. No. It couldn't be. He suppressed a sob. He felt
    Benton's arms go around him and squeeze. "I won't let her. I won't. She's
    just a baby..." 
    
    Large, gentle hands soothed him, stroked his hair and his back. "Shh.
    I know..." 
    
    Ray encircled him with his arms, holding tightly. "I'll find her, and
    we'll fix it. Right?" 
    
    "Yes. We'll try," promised Benton. He could feel his lover trembling
    with the emotions assailing him. By the voice he could tell Ray was weeping
    and he felt his own heart breaking. 
    
    "Right?" 
    
    *** 
    
    Mina finished her examination of Tom and nodded. "You were right. You
    are pregnant." She smiled at James, raising her eyebrows. "Congratulations."
    
    "Huh," was all the Sabbat Elder could say. 
    
    "I want to keep you on a monitor for a few hours, just to be safe." She
    turned back to Tom seriously. 
    
    "Why?" 
    
    She gave him a look. "Sophia. Nikko. Cecelia. Need more reasons?" 
    
    A glance at James told him Mina had won. "Uh, no. Okay." 
    
    *** 
    
    "Ohh..." 
    
    Fraser looked up as Grissom's eyes fluttered open. "Thomas? What is it?"
    
    "Now. It's now. Get Dr. Turnbull!" He was having trouble catching his
    breath and the feel of Adolph's wings around him was comforting. Eva
    was trying hard to get out without hurting him but it wasn't working.
    His knuckles were bone white as they squeezed the sheets. 
    
    "You'll be all right for a few minutes...?" Fraser wasn't sure. 
    
    "Yeah...hurry!" He bit back a cry of pain. 
    
    *** 
    
    It was over. Four hours later, Mina was placing a tiny, delicate little
    creature on Tom's chest. Eva was in many ways similar to Adolph, but
    smaller at birth and without his dorsal spines. Instead she had a ridge
    of short, stiff pinkish hair that reached from her head to the base of
    her spine, ending right between her wings. Her tail was bare and shorter
    than Adolph's, too. Her voice, until she gained control of it, sounded
    like a bird's chirp, and her eyes were larger and bright blue. She was
    adorable. 
    
    The Oracle, fighting off the overwhelming need for sleep, blinked and
    smiled down at her. Eva gazed at him through sleepy eyes for a moment,
    flapping her wings for balance, then Mina whisked her off to wash and
    check her, returning in a few minutes to lay the blanket-wrapped bundle
    back where she had been. Eva cheeped at her father again then lay her
    head down beneath Tom's chin and went to sleep. 
    
    James, who, much as he loved his children had had enough of this birthing
    crap, caught the look in his Tom's eyes. Breeders. Damnation. 
    
    "You've got one home. Don't even think about it," he snapped and Tom
    sighed. 
    
    Fraser smiled at the sight of Adolph trying to catch a better look at
    his sister. Who would have thought Adolph could ever be considered sweet?
    
    "I need to see Cecilia," Tom announced, not unexpectedly. 
    
    "She's at the apartment. Cecil moved in with the twins to take care of
    the kids," James answered, resigned to the fact that they were going
    to need a crow bar to pry Cecilia out of her surrogate's mitts. There
    was a gleam in his eyes that Tom, in his moment of paternal distraction,
    completely missed. 
    
    He looked over at Fraser and Turnbull, ordering them to remain with one
    stern look. He dug his keys out of his pocket. "Here. Take the Jag. Fraser
    can get me home later." 
    
    "Alright." Tom eyed him hungrily before planting a kiss on the vampire
    and hurrying out the door. 
    
    "Like clockwork," muttered James, shaking his head. 
    
    "Indeed," agreed Fraser. "Quite a predictable response. What was it you
    wanted, Jamey?" 
    
    With a jerk of his head he indicated they should speak in the hall, not
    here. Once outside Tom's room, James all but pounced on Fraser. "We have
    to go find them. Now." 
    
    Tom wasn't the only one with predictable responses and Fraser nodded
    at this expected announcement. 
    
    "I want my Prince back and I want my double safe and I'm sick of being
    jerked around by these bastards that use us to fight their little wars.
    Tom can't help this time. He's pregnant - don't give that look, Fraser.
    You either, Turnbull!  I did /not/ plan on this. Trust me. Someone else
    had to have a hand in this because I'm not capable of just up and fathering
    a kid. Anyway, I'm not letting Tom get in a position where Vermis might
    get his hooks into him like he did the other one and I sure as hell not
    letting him get near my kids." 
    
    "You and I will go," stated Fraser. He looked at his fellow constable.
    "Turnbull, we'll need you here." 
    
    "How will I know when you need to come home?" 
    
    "I'll tell Tom," said James confidently. "You'll have the unenviable
    job of keeping him here." 
    
    "Once he knows he's the only way you'll get home again, I'm sure he'll
    comply." 
    
    "I'm going to hear this until Sophia's in college. All right, let's move.
    What do we need to do this?" 
    
    "A demon willing to sacrifice some blood," said Turnbull. 
    
    "I'll do it," Adolph said quietly. They looked over, surprised. They
    hadn't even heard him follow. 
    
    "Thank you kindly, Adolph," said Fraser softly, smiling gently. 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom pulled open the car door, looking up as he felt the unmistakable
    tension of a wormhole being opened and sighed. "James..." He knew where
    and why and how and his heart was pulled in a dozen different directions
    at once: pride, worry, fear, anger, anxiety, envy. He knew, though, that
    he wouldn't be able to say a word of criticism to James upon his return
    home - and he /would/ return home - in light of the fact that he'd made
    so many major decisions without James' consent. He settled in the front
    seat and was about to start the car when a desperately cold hand grabbed
    him and pulled him against the seat, a second covering his mouth. "Don't.
    Move," a voice hissed in his ear. 
    
    He could hurt the stranger, he was sure of it, but he wasn't sure what
    effect it would have on the baby. So for now, he didn't move. 
    
    "Do you know who I am?" 
    
    He shook his head as best as he could, trying to breathe through his
    nose. 
    
    Slowly the hand around his chest reached up and moved the rear view mirror.
    No reflection. 
    
    Vampire. 
    
    "I'm not going to hurt you. Not if you do what I say, okay?" At Tom's
    nod he continued. "I'm going to let you go. Are you going to try anything
    stupid?" 
    
    Tom shook his head. The hands slowly moved away from him. He shoved away
    from the seat, turning around. 
    
    A man sat in the back, holding a gun at him. "Drive." 
    
    "Drive where?" 
    
    "Just drive." 
    
    "No. Not 'til I know who you are." 
    
    The vampire smiled strangely. "You...you can call me Angelus. Wyrm sent
    me." 
    
    "Oh. Great. Is this supposed to thrill me? Because it doesn't, pal. What
    clan are you from? I want a pedigree if I'm going to be stuck with your
    sorry butt in my lupa's car." 
    
    Angelus did not look at all please by the question. 
    
    It was then that Tom realized Angelus had no idea he was a childe of
    the Endari Sabbat. A vampire couldn't tell that Tom was undead. 
    
    Too weird. He filed that information away, certain it would be useful
    later, if only to give Von and Ted and Joan a little hell. 
    
    "What, ashamed of your family? That's pathetic. Just the kind of person
    Wyrm would recruit. Don't get anything on the upholstery. If I'm going
    to miss rocking my infant daughter to sleep again, you're fucking putting
    up with my attitude." 
    
    Angelus said nothing. 
    
    //Loser//, thought the Moloch, deciding he wanted to play stunt driver
    for the night when he noticed Angelus didn't wear his seatbelt. 
    
    *** 
    
    Fog rose in heavy banks off the river as they explored the waterfront
    for the place Kowalski and Tom had described for them. The Sabbat was
    uneasy this close to the water, though he hid his discomfort well. James
    stared down at the smelly, polluted, oily river, sighing. "He would have
    to be down there." 
    
    Fraser looked at him sympathetically. "See those?" He pointed to slowly
    moving forms. 
    
    "Krakens. Shit. There would have to be krakens." 
    
    "I've only dealt with them once before, some fur poachers were using
    them in a scheme to slaughter baby seals and even then I didn't have
    to deal with the krakens directly. Do you know anything about them?"
    
    "Water isn't my specialty, Fraser.  All I know is that they've got the
    collective intelligence of a ping-pong ball and they live to eat." 
    
    "I believe they're not normally aggressive. I'm not sure if they hunt
    by scent or movement, but they didn't attack Ray and they did attack
    Tom." 
    
    "Yeah, but how much was Ray really here that time?" 
    
    "As much as Tom. Perhaps they can detect heat." 
    
    "Or they don't recognize the undead as food. I understand we're pretty
    tough to ingest." 
    
    "I'd back my grandmother's sauerbraten against you," muttered Fraser,
    studying the krakens as best he could through the fog. "They're centering
    on this area.  Calhoun must be directly down here." 
    
    "Which side?" 
    
    "Vermis' base must be up river a bit, since Tom fell in the river outside
    the chapel and would have been swept down river. The question is, now
    what?" 
    
    James cautiously peeked over the edge of a dock. "How deep could it be?"
    
    "That varies, Jamey. My concern is the undertow." 
    
    He backed away. "I really, really, really hate water, Fraser." 
    
    "I believe that's why Vermis has your double chained at the bottom. What
    would it do to you?" 
    
    "I'd freak. Even worse than Tom." 
    
    "There you go. Now, seeing as how you don't require oxygen, I suggest
    you be the one to free Calhoun and I'll divert the krakens." 
    
    "Divert the krakens? Divert the bottomless pits with ten rows of teeth
    and a hankering for Canadian food? Just how the hell do you propose to
    do that, Constable?" 
    
    Fraser was calmly regarding the surface of the water. "Go for a swim."
    
    "Oh, sure. Take a dunk in the river. Why didn't I think of that?  Shit,
    Fraser, there's enough pollution an atheist could walk across it! Are
    you unhinged?" 
    
    "Do you have a better solution?" 
    
    "Not at the moment, but are we in a rush?" 
    
    "Yes." 
    
    "Shit." 
    
    Another hour of exploring revealed Vermis' chapel half a mile up river
    on the opposite bank. James took the opportunity to curse a little more
    then steeled himself for the task ahead of them. 
    
    "Give me fifteen minutes to get back, then go." 
    
    "I hate this plan, Fraser." 
    
    "Duly noted, Major." 
    
    *** 
    
    Tom slammed on the gas, grinning when he felt Angelus shoved against
    the back of his seat, then switched to the brakes, letting the car spin
    out before stopping in a deserted parking lot. James would simultaniously
    flip out and smile with pride if he knew. 
    
    He'd seen Von following him a mile back, a familiar blond shock of hair
    beside the angry Sabbat. Apparently the Sabbat second was babysitting
    their neutered friend. If he was right... 
    
    He was. The rear door opened just as Angelus managed to pry himself off
    the seat and a pair of hands yanked the invader out of the car. Tom gave
    Von a grateful grin before shakily stepping out of the car. 
    
    "Looky here, we've got Old Brood Meister himself! Mr. Poofy, yer messin'
    with the wrong consort here!" laughed Spike. Angelus was slightly dazed
    but recovered swiftly. His eyes grew large when he recognized the Anarch.
    
    "You know him?" wondered Tom. 
    
    The blonde grinned. "We go /way/ back." 
    
    "You're an Anarch?" Tom asked Angelus. 
    
    Spike laughed. "Self-proclaimed Autarkis, actually. Didn't quite cut
    it, did ya, boy-o?" 
    
    "Are you hurt?" demanded Von of Tom. 
    
    "Do you care?" 
    
    "Not really, I'm just covering my ass." 
    
    Tom grinned at Von, shaking his head, then grabbed Angelus by the collar,
    pinning him against the side of the car. "Care to explain why you tried
    to hijack me? 
    
    "Wyrm sent me," Angelus replied, struggling in the Higher's grip. 
    
    "You trying to get on their bad side, Angelus, or are you just stupid?"
    Spike questioned, shaking his head. "Oh, wait. What am I thinking? You're
    the one who boinks slayers even though they know they'll lose their soul."
    
    Tom rolled his eyes, and made a motion for Von to help him. The Sabbat
    reluctantly complied. "Why. Are. You. Here?" 
    
    "He wants out." 
    
    "Out of what?" 
    
    "The form Vermis trapped him in. He enlisted my help. Cordy had a vision,
    if Wyrm is not freed from his form, Vermis will take over this world
    as well. And Vermis doesn't give a damn if we live or die." 
    
    Tom looked to Spike, who nodded. "He's telling the truth. The bugger
    never lies. Not even when he's soulless. The wimp." 
    
    *** 
    
    Livia sat in the throne of her lover's church, waiting for them to come
    for her. She knew they would, her father's affection for her would not
    allow them to leave her behind. 
    
    She'd be waiting for them when they came back. And she'd destroy them.
    
    *** 
    
    "How the hell long is he going to sleep?" demanded Ray, pacing like a
    caged animal. 
    
    Benton's voice was quiet and calm. "He almost died, Ray. He very nearly
    bled to death. He's in no shape to be doing any of this. He needs to
    rest and so do you." 
    
    "But..." 
    
    "I know. Please, lie down again. You need to sleep some more." 
    
    "Can't." 
    
    "I'll tell you an Inuit story." 
    
    Despite himself, Ray smiled, gliding back into the Mountie's arms. He
    hugged him desperately, trying to still his broken heart. 
    
    *** 
    
    James wasted an entire minute pacing on the waterfront. "I hate this.
    I hate this. I hate this. I - shit!" 
    
    And he dove into the river. 
    
    He remembered the words of wisdom his father had imparted to him over
    a century ago when his mother had tried to recruit him to help with the
    knitting: "Jamey-lad, if yer not likin' a task, don't be gettin' any
    good at it." 
    
    He could swim. He could swim very well, in fact. He just fucking hated
    the water. 
    
    He dove down deep into the darkness, his eyes searching for the wreck
    Tom and Ray had described. All he could see was mud and debris and the
    occasional fish that somehow survived in this muck. The current tugged
    him deeper and he swam forward with long, powerful strokes, expelling
    the oxygen from his lungs so he could go deeper. 
    
    How far had he come? Too far? Not far enough? 
    
    Then he saw a long, graceful form slicing through the water above him.
    A kraken. He was close and they had to be after Fraser. Stupid, dumb,
    damn Mountie had better not get his ass eaten... 
    
    Then he saw a blurry object that had been white once upon a time. There.
    Chained to a piling or anchor. The other James Calhoun. He battled the
    water over to the drifting figure, caught up in a sudden current that
    slammed him directly into his double. The other didn't respond. He gave
    the other vampire an apologetic look and went to work. 
    
    *** 
    
    Fraser swam hard, trying to get back to the shore. He'd drifted a little
    further than he'd planned and he could see the churning water that heralded
    the arrival of the krakens. Once he got the krakens to shore, he'd be
    able to slay them. Easily. And they were stupid enough creatures to follow
    him right up onto the waterfront. 
    
    Faster, faster. He was an excellent swimmer but out of practice. Still,
    he made good time and was just gripping the ladder to get back onto the
    dock when he felt something rubbery and wet whip around his ankle. He
    gave a pained cry as one of them yanked him back into the water, diving
    deep as it tried to avoid its fellow sea-creature. 
    
    Fraser struggled, trying to hold some oxygen in his lungs even as he
    reached for the illegal stake in his boot. The kraken dove and twisted
    madly and he knew he had only seconds. 
    
    *** 
    
    Grissom stirred in his sleep but didn't awaken, smiling and cuddling
    when Eva curled closer to him. Adolph sat perched on a chair, watching
    his father sleep with a satisfied smile on his own face. 
    
    It was peaceful. He could tell. He didn't know what his father was dreaming,
    but he could feel there was no pain behind it. Finally, his father was
    beginning to be at peace. 
    
    He could only hope he stayed that way. 
    
    Eva's eyes opened, she yawned, seemed to smile at him and went right
    back to sleep again. She was more than adorable. She was all that was
    sweet. 
    
    *** 
    
    Vargas sat at the desk in his apartment, playing with a button from his
    failed Alderman campaign. He looked up at see Stenos and San Diego watching
    him and shook his head. "Think we'll get him back?" 
    
    "I dunno. With all the laws against demons and everything since the massacre
    in Chicago that Tom's son caused..." 
    
    "My son...He was my son too." 
    
    "Would you want him to come back? He wouldn't exactly be welcome, would
    he?" Never one to mince words, Stenos didn't try to pad the impact of
    what he said to his friend. 
    
    "Maybe I could go there...all of us?" He looked at them curiously and
    a little hopefully. "It's not perfect, but I think it's a better world
    than this one. At least demons stand on equal footing with the rest of
    the world there. They citizens, not novelties. I mean, look what's happening
    in the world. All the terrorism. The slaughters in Africa. Camps in Canada.
    Why stay here? The world is dying." 
    
    Stenos nodded. "Like I got something here to keep me?" 
    
    "Tom is there," said Alex dreamily. 
    
    San Diego shook his head. "Man, I got Benita an' her whole family. I
    think I'm related to every last person without a green card here on the
    east coast. I don' know, Alex. What would we do?" 
    
    "Chicago PD," said a sleepy voice. They all turned as Kowalski exited
    the bedroom. He looked awful, paper white, wasted, and he held the wall
    for support. "We're pretty desperate. I could get you jobs and housing
    no problem. Think about it. Vermis has got nastier plans for your world
    than Wyrm has for ours. At least we know how to fight him, too." 
    
    *** 
    
    "Where can we find Wyrm?" Tom asked. Von looked at him in surprise. True
    to form, Von believed Tom incapable of rational or decisive conversation.
    
    "What?" Angelus blinked, stunned. 
    
    "Where can we find Wyrm?" 
    
    "Um...He's...he's at the old school. Waiting." 
    
    Tom nodded, tightening his grip on Angelus' shoulder. He gave Von a look.
    They had use for Wyrm, but worms...? 
    
    Von followed Tom's gaze to the gate of the building where they were parked.
    
    Long metal spikes stood out of the gate as a warning to trespassers.
    Von grinned. Spike chuckled. For once, the consort seemed to be on the
    same wave as the bad boys of the vampire underworld. Must be that new
    Sabbat blood in him. "You read my mind." 
    
    Tom smirked. 
    
    Within seconds Angelus was dust. 
    
    *** 
    
    Blood bubbled up on the surface of the river as James dragged his double
    up to the docks. He could smell it even in this murky water. The vampire
    he had rescued was slowly regaining consciousness, but for now the major
    was more worried about Fraser, knowing the human was far more vulnerable
    than the Sabbat. 
    
    Was the blood his? Or the Kraken's? 
    
    His answer came in the form of a seriously soaked Mountie clamoring up
    the pilings at the edge of the waterfront. He was clutching a stake and
    panting heavily, coughing and spitting and generally proving to James
    that he was still very much alive. Blood too thick to wash off in the
    water covered him and he could see the Slayer Born and Bred was bleeding
    from a dozen cuts on his arms and chest. 
    
    He was one of the best things the Sabbat had ever seen. 
    
    Struggling forward, James wrestled his twin up the ladder, glad for the
    fog that concealed them from prying eyes and forever grateful to be back
    on terra firma. He dragged the deadweight body up to the dock and left
    him there as he went to help Fraser. The Mountie was stunned and reeling
    and rightfully pleased with his own performance. 
    
    "Fish for dinner?" asked James brightly, steadying him. 
    
    Fraser made a noise that the vampire could only assume was agreement,
    both soggy and amused. 
    
    "Okay. All we have to do is find Prince Kowalski and stop Vermis. How
    hard could it be?" 
    
    "A cake walk," slurred his companion. Another strange noise from the
    Mountie, then Fraser smiled and passed out. 
    
    *** 
    
    Wyrm growled at the reflection of the boy in the mirror at one of Chicago's
    oldest and most dilapidated schools. How had he come to this? Trapped
    in the body of an idiot by his own brother. The irony - and the poetic
    justice - of the situation had not escaped him. 
    
    Forced to rely on mortals to do his bidding. Slain by his own self from
    another world. 
    
    Damn them all. 
    
    He needed Prince Kowalski back here. There was no question about it.
    The only problem was that Vermis had snatched away the ghoulite in exchange
    for that useless Oracle. That, and this body was more a hindrance than
    an asset. 
    
    Damn them all again. 
    
    *** 
    
    He awoke and was surprised to find he was hungry. It was almost a new
    sensation. 
    
    Adolph was curled up on the chair beside him. There was a pillow underneath
    him and someone had tucked a blanket around him. Tom smiled, touched
    by his loyalty. 
    
    He looked down in time to see Eva's tiny equivalent of a huge yawn. She
    had sharp yellow teeth and a forked tongue like her brother. Truthfully,
    even more than Adolph, she resembled a dragon with human body language
    and motions. 
    
    Catching sight of her father, she let out a small trill and if nothing
    else charmed Tom into complete servitude to her, that little noise of
    welcome that she gave him at that moment sealed his fate. 
    
    He reached a finger out to touch the ridge of pink hair on her head and
    melted as her tail wrapped around his wrist and she struggled to climb
    into his hand. He gently helped her and she promptly tried to get her
    mouth around his thumb, proving her teeth weren't as sharp as they appeared.
    She was as famished as he and less patient. 
    
    He hit the call button beside his bed, wondering just what one fed a
    baby Wyrm. 
    
    *** 
    
    "If we get caught-" 
    
    "If we get caught, Bri, we're just six guys walking along the waterfront
    at three AM. Nothing illegal about it." 
    
    "I ain't talking illegal, we'll just be recognized!" 
    
    "Then we're six cops walking along the waterfront at three AM," Ray snapped
    irritably. "Happy?" 
    
    "Only if Vermis never finds out I exist." 
    
    "If you keep talking so loudly, the whole fucking eastern seaboard is
    going to know you're here," said a new voice. 
    
    Kowalski and Ray gasped. "Cal!" 
    
    "Elder!" 
    
    The vampire emerged from the shadows of an alleyway, his movements graceful
    and careful as he made his way towards them. Kowalski, thrilled at seeing
    his retainer again, all but tackled the Sabbat. 
    
    "God, you're a sight for sore eyes!" 
    
    "Literally," commented James. He looked his prince over carefully. Ray
    looked like hell but at least it was living hell. "Fraser's here." 
    
    He got tackled all over again. Somehow, he didn't mind at all. 
    
    *** 
    
    Spike and Von reluctantly followed Tom into the school, slowly trailing
    the irate Moloch Higher. "So, why are we following this bloke again?"
    Spike hissed at Von. 
    
    "Orders." 
    
    "Wimp." 
    
    Tom shot them both a look, then paused just outside the cafeteria. He
    took a breath and threw open the doors. "Wyrm!" he growled, staring at
    the boy he had last known as Xander. 
    
    Wyrm muttered, annoyed as the host body shattered at the growled words
    and reformed. "You do realize how annoying that is?" 
    
    "Of course. What the hell do you want?" 
    
    "Freedom." 
    
    "That's rich, coming from you." 
    
    "This world is threatened. Or do you think Vermis will be content to
    destroy just his own world?" 
    
    Tom's eyes narrowed. He glanced at the two blond vampires making faces
    at them from by the door. They were zero help. 
    
    "You use us to fight your wars - " 
    
    "You think that I, in turn, am not used by those mightier than I?" 
    
    That gave Tom pause. "What are you talking about?" 
    
    *** 
    
    A somewhat recovered but soggy as hell Fraser and the one-time Gangrel
    Ray peered over the stack of crates at Vermis' church, then turned back
    to the others. "She's in there," Ray said, then glanced at Prince Kowalski
    who looked...really bad. "You're gonna be okay with this?" 
    
    The hell he was, but Kowalski nodded. "Yeah. Let's go." 
    
    The Calhoun from this world was mostly recovered, a haunted look in his
    pale eyes as he silently followed. James had let him feed, knowing vampire
    blood was the best thing for him at the time and knowing, too, that his
    blood was pure power. Hopefully, it would far towards stabilizing his
    personality, too. James saw a lot of himself in this poor creature. Calhoun
    was fortunate to have Caine in him. 
    
    They were nine strong now, all of them capable fighters in their own
    right.  Kowalski couldn't help but notice, though, that both Sabbat and
    both Mounties drew close, instinctively ready to protect him. He smirked,
    knowing Fraser didn't even realize he did it and his retainer did it
    on purpose. 
    
    *** 
    
    Livia looked up, pulling her freshly clean robes around herself as the
    doors to Vermis' chapel were shoved open. She smiled at them all, deceitfully
    innocent. 
    
    "Livia!" breathed Ray, his face revealing the extent of his love. Oh,
    god, she was lovely. His daughter. She looked like him and Tom. God...
    
    Kowalski reached for his double. "Ray, wait - " 
    
    Livia cocked her head. "You should listen to the Prince, Daddy!" 
    
    And she struck. 
    
    The two Mounties managed to keep on their feet for a few moments, barely
    able to hear the screams erupting around them. Benton, who was a Slayer
    Born, fell first, followed quickly by his counterpart. 
    
    Calhoun was screaming, dropping to his knees, feeling Caine battle to
    protect him. 
    
    Though he lacked the presence of an Ancient, James was more adept at
    psychic attacks. He was also more vulnerable and he threw his head back,
    unable to move, able only to scream as his mind seemed to explode. 
    
    He was too closely linked to Prince Kowalski...The Knight of Chicago
    gasped, pitching forward. Blood poured from his nose and ears and he
    fell to the ground beside his lover, twitching and trembling. 
    
    One by one they went down and she walked among the crumpling men like
    a priestess among her followers. She left only her father standing. 
    
    Ray gaped as she stood before him and he shivered. Afraid of his daughter.
    His own daughter. "L-livia...?" 
    
    "Daddy." She smiled sweetly and touched his stricken face. "I saved the
    best for you..." 
    
    He barely had time to shake his head before she attacked. 
    
    *** 
    
    "Jesus God in Heaven," breathed San Diego, wincing at the screams. He
    looked at his fellow officers. Both were pale, but they held their ground.
    
    "This is nuts," muttered Stenos. 
    
    "Yup," agreed Alex quietly, still gripping Diefenbaker by the scruff.
    He was actually glad the werewolf seemed to be deaf at this moment. "Stay
    put. We'll get our chance at her. I don't care what Ray says - both of
    you shoot to kill. Got it?" 
    
    "No problem, Sarge," muttered Brian, shifting nervously. 
    
    *** 
    
    Aja sat with Turnbull in the hospital chapel, waiting. When his father
    returned, they'd pull them back. That would be the only way they'd know
    when to reopen the wormhole. They needed James to contact Tom. 
    
    They needed Tom back here. Aja had called Cecil. Tom had never showed
    up at the apartment. 
    
    But what if something happened? What if they couldn't find out? What
    would happen then? 
    
    Aja had a very bad feeling. He knew his son needed him. Did Raymond have
    any idea, though, of how much Aja needed him? 
    
    *** 
    
    "So, what do you want?" 
    
    "My brother has designs on this, my world. It's an ageless battle, but
    this time he has gone too far. He captured my body in my own kingdom
    and slew it with his poisons. This was the only form I could find that
    you would understand." 
    
    Spike made a noise. "So...somewhere there's a six million ton you rotting
    beneath the planet?" 
    
    Wyrm glared. Even though it came from Xander's eyes, it was effective
    enough to shut the Anarch up. 
    
    "What do you desire more than peace, Higher? A world where you can bear
    and raise your progeny. A world where you know contentment. Do you ask
    for more?" 
    
    "Not really," admitted Tom. 
    
    "Did I not provide that for you?" 
    
    "It was a pretty faade, Wyrm. Meanwhile, the rest of the world was going
    straight to hell." 
    
    "That was as much mankind's doing as my own. And has it not brought an
    age of renewal to this planet? The gross overpopulation, the pollution,
    the hatred - has that not been slowed if not halted?" 
    
    "It'll all come back eventually." 
    
    "It doesn't have to." 
    
    Tom frowned, alarms going off in his head. "What are you proposing?"
    
    "I'll give you what you want. You give me what I need." Wyrm smiled,
    "It seems fair, does it not?" 
    
    Tom looked to Von, who made a point of looking off into space. "It does.
    What do I need to do?" 
    
    "You'll know..." 
    
    Tom nodded, suddenly struck by a dizzy spell. "James..." 
    
    "Consort?" Von was alert now. "What's the matter with you?" 
    
    "Something's wrong. Something's happened." He looked up at Von. "Get
    me back to the Seeker. Now!" 
    
    *** 
    
    Benton was the first to awaken, wiping off the blood that had smeared
    across his face. He coughed, lifting his head and taking survey of the
    bodies. They were all there. Calhoun and James. Fraser and the prince.
    
    Ray... 
    
    Oh dear God. 
    
    "Ray!" Completely aware of the fact someone was pounding on the doors,
    trying to get in and choosing to ignore it, he made his way across the
    chapel to the sacrificial altar at the fore of the building. Ray lay
    on the stone, arms folded across his chest almost lovingly. Marigolds
    had been scattered around him and he was not moving. 
    
    "Ray?!" He went to his lover's side, shaking him. Trying to awaken the
    blonde man. He was cold. 
    
    A limp arm slid off his chest. Crushed marigolds filled his grasp. 
    
    "No...No!" Madly he looked up, staring at smears of blood on the wall.
    Latin. He didn't know Latin. Oh God. Livia had done this? 
    
    *** 
    
    Grissom blinked rapidly and sat up. "Ray?" 
    
    Adolph, holding his sister while she fed off the bottle the nurse had
    given him, looked up. "Daddy? What is it?" 
    
    "Where are the others?" 
    
    "In the chapel. Is something wrong?" 
    
    "Take me there. Please." 
    
    *** 
    
    "No! No! NO! Oh god, Ray! No!" 
    
    Fraser woke from a daze to his own voice screaming. It took him a moment
    to realize it was Benton, not himself. He looked around. Ray lay close
    to him, his face bloody but he seemed to be breathing normally. Fraser
    got his legs beneath him and staggered to his feet. What was...? 
    
    Ray. Dear God. Ray. 
    
    Benton was hysterical. Fraser felt his own panic rise at the sight of
    the weeping Mountie. What...? 
    
    He staggered to the alter, unable to stop until he bumped against it.
    
    Ray Kowalski was dead. Well and truly dead. Fraser felt his chest tighten
    in speechless horror at the empty blue eyes and colorless lips. 
    
    Calhoun was on his feet, holding off the Mountie as he tried to check
    on the man that had been his friend and vampire lover. Suddenly the Elder
    put his head back and squeezed his eyes tightly shut, biting back a cry
    of grief. 
    
    "Frase?" 
    
    The voice was faint and weak. Both Mounties whirled to see Prince Kowalski,
    wasted and thin and pale as his double leaning heavily on one of the
    pillars. He stared at the pathetic figure on the altar, then at the grieving
    Benton. 
    
    "Oh, Benton..." 
    
    The outer door finally gave way and Alex rushed in, Stenos and San Diego
    on his heels. Dief immediately rushed to Benton's side, whining at the
    scent and sight of Ray. Sergeant Vargas came to a halt, staring at the
    group of men as the truth dawned he slowly deflated, pain replacing anxiety.
    
    "Oh, god..." 
    
    He looked down. James still sprawled on the floor, his eyes empty and
    blood on his face. 
    
    "What - what the fuck happened?" 
    
    Benton closed his eyes, tears spilling down his cheeks. "Livia," he managed
    to choke before his tears overwhelmed him. 
    
    *** 
    
    "Livia..." Grissom whispered as Adolph helped him into the room. They
    had dropped Eva off, albeit reluctantly, at the newborn unit where she
    was busy being adored by all the nurses. 
    
    Turnbull turned to the weak-looking Oracle, surprised. "What?" 
    
    "Livia...my daughter. Something's happened. Something terrible. I think...I
    think they're hurt." 
    
    Before Turnbull could even react to that tidbit, the doors flew open
    once more and admitted Von and Tom. The psychic was bordering frantic.
    
    "Open it! Open the wormhole, now! They're in danger. Get them out now!"
    Tom was practically hyperventilating. 
    
    Turnbull didn't need to be told more than twice. Adolph glided over to
    him, holding out his arm. 
    
    "Use me, Seeker. Please." 
    
    *** 
    
    Calhoun was holding the hysterical Mountie tightly, thankful for Caine's
    ability to keep his emotions in check for now. There'd be plenty of time
    to grieve later. Oh, god, Ray... 
    
    They needed to plan. They needed to work out how they were going to get
    this bitch. 
    
    James stirred on the floor, his eyes finally clearing and blinking. Kowalski
    made his way over and knelt by his retainer, helping him to sit up. "Cal?
    You okay?" 
    
    "They're opening...w'rhmhole..." James muttered, his voice full of slurs.
    Ray frowned, for the first time realizing Livia's assault had done some
    serious damage. 
    
    "Come on. I'll help ya. Stand up. That's it..." 
    
    He almost collapsed under the Sabbat's weight as Jamey tried to rise.
    He was struggling, they both were, when Stenos grabbed the Sabbat's other
    arm and hauled him upright, supporting him. Calhoun looked up and saw
    the tragedy that had happened when they had been incapacitated. Ben was
    weeping, Calhoun and Fraser standing close. He looked to his own Prince,
    barely able to focus on him, and saw Kowalski was not fit for the demands
    he placed upon himself. Oh, god. Ray. He'd barely known him. 
    
    "S'Tom," he slurred, looking past the altar. 
    
    Sure enough, a wormhole blazed open. Alex and San Diego lead the stunned
    Benton away. Calhoun paused and lifted the cold body of his friend, motioning
    Dief to preceed him into the wormhole with a jerk of his head. Then Ray
    and Jamey and Stenos were swallowed into the swirling tunnel. Taking
    up the rear guard, Fraser glanced one more time at the bloody words above
    the stone altar where Ray Kowalski had died: 
    
    Inreto Wyrm Sub Terra. 
    
    *** 
    
    "You did well, Livia." Vermis smiled at his consort, not unkindly. 
    
    "Better than your last?" She was jealous. Vermis smirked, pleased. Jealousy
    would whet her enthusiasm. 
    
    "My last what?" he teased. 
    
    She scowled at him. "Better than my father?" 
    
    It was probably best not to stoke the fires of her self indulgence. Not
    quite yet. She was arrogant and assured, but she was very young and she
    had higher priorities to his future self than to her own indulgences.
    He shook his head, and caressed her cheek. "My dear Livia. No one ever
    killed as gracefully in my name as your father." 
    
    She glared, shoving his hands off her. "But you said..." 
    
    "I merely said he didn't remember. But he will. And he'll do it again."
    He smiled, full of malice. "With both of you at my side, there will be
    no stopping me." 
    
    "And if he refuses?" 
    
    "Then he'll die." 
    
    *** 
    
    "Oh, my god." 
    
    Turnbull paled as the figures stepped into the chapel. For a moment he
    didn't know if the Mountie was Benton or his own Constable Fraser. Then
    he saw Ray in Calhoun's arms and Caine let out what was close to a scream
    of absolute grief that turned into a sob when he saw his own son come
    through. 
    
    Tom and Von vied for first to reach James. Tom won by virtue of a well-placed
    elbow strike as he barged Kowalski aside. The prince knelt down, wrapping
    his arm around his father and just...held him. They didn't look up until
    Calhoun slowly walked past him, still carrying the body of the Gangrel.
    
    "Ray?" 
    
    He turned as Fraser appeared and with his hands still on Aja's shoulders
    he leaned into the Mountie, letting Fraser be strong for him for the
    moment. They were silent, not a one of them able to speak. Then Aja stepped
    away from Ray, addressing the group. 
    
    "We must prepare a funeral as befitting a prince, for the brother of
    my prince has given his life as befitting a soldier in this war. Come.
    We have wounded that need our attention." 
    
    


End file.
